This is Where It Ends
by amykay
Summary: The third and final book in my series of Flint and Lady Jaye's post Joe lives. This follows directly after the conclusion of For You.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: Welcome to the third and final story of Flint and Lady Jaye trilogy. I'm sorry about the long delay, but I decided to change my approach with this story and wait until it was completely written before I started publishing. It's still in the editing stage, but updates should come faster than the previous stories. Thanks in advance to those that are still curious as to how this story ends._

 _This story picks up directly after he end of For You._

* * *

For most people, the start of a new year means resolutions and promises to change their life for the better. For Dashiell "Flint" Faireborn, this was especially true. He, Alison and Marissa had rung in the new year with his family in Kansas, and had then returned to DC the following day. Flint had spent most of the flight deep in thought contemplating the future.

Flint's immediate concern was Alison's upcoming hearing. He had tried to follow his own advice to not dwell on something he had no control over. And for the most part he had been successful. But now that the Christmas holiday was over, and they were returning to work, he couldn't help but worry about it. He still had total faith in his wife's innocence, and he knew no long-lasting harm was going to come from the hearing, but he still hated the idea that she had to go through the ordeal.

And to make matters worse, there was still the possibility that he might end up being recalled to the Joe team when the hearings were scheduled to start. His temporary orders to the Pentagon were set to expire in mid-January. Flint had held off finding a unit to transfer to, because there had been talk of starting an off-shoot branch of the GI Joe team in the DC area. It would have been perfect for him. However, he had received a phone call from Hawk a couple of evenings after Christmas that the Jugglers had shot down the idea.

"They claimed it didn't make financial sense to start a second GI Joe unit. However, they have come around to the idea of the Joe's team usefulness. So in a complete reversal from the last couple of years, all future transfers out of the Joes are put on hold."

Flint contemplated the implication. He was glad that the Joes would be the leading the fight against the Red Shadows, an adversary with a fitting name. After the attack that had led to bloodshed at the Pentagon, they had disappeared back into the shadows. But everyone believed it was only a matter of time before they attacked again. And as much as he wanted to be on the team that was actively hunting those bastards down, he felt just as strongly about protecting his family. All he had to do was remember the panic and dread he had felt as he had stood outside the burning Pentagon knowing that his wife and daughter were still inside. He was not going to let the Red Shadows or any other terrorist group attack his family again.

"Flint, are you still there?" Hawk asked.

"Yes, sir, I'm sorry." Flint sighed and decided to voice his concerns. "Sir, you know I would never shirk my responsibilities. And if it turns out that I have no choice than to return to the Joe team, I would perform my duties to the best of my abilities. But, if I have any say in the matter, I still want to try to stay in DC with Alison and Marissa."

"I figured that was what you were going to say. So I took it upon myself to have a chat with General Bradshaw. The Jugglers may have put a freeze on any Joes leaving the unit, but they also haven't agreed to an increase in personnel. Along with Duke and Falcon, Anvil needs a fourth person in the leadership chain. If it can't be you, maybe it could be Beachhead."

Flint once again lost himself to his thoughts. Hawk was basically offering to let him and Beachhead switch positions. It would mean that Flint would have a lot less time in the field, but he would be helping out the intelligence unit in their search for threats. It was the perfect compromise.

"I'm in. What did Beachhead say?"

"I haven't talked to him yet, since I wanted to run it by you first. He hasn't gone on leave, so I can talk to him in the morning."

"No, sir, if it can wait, I'd like to speak to him once I get back."

Hawk had expressed a few concerns about the two discussing the matter, but he had eventually relented with the caveat that he needed an official answer as soon as Flint returned to work. Flint agreed and had put it at the top of his new year to-do list.

On January 2nd, Flint, Alison and Marissa drove together to the Pentagon. Flint and Alison had struggled with the decision about whether to keep Marissa in the daycare on-site of the Pentagon. They had spent the time Alison was recuperating going over the pros and cons. A few days before she had returned to work in early December they had decided to keep her enrolled there. They figured that even though the Pentagon was always going to be a potential target, the fact that it had been attacked actually made it less of a risk. Plus, the idea that she was close by and easily accessible in the case of a future emergency, outweighed the negatives.

During the drive, Flint and Alison sat in silence, both lost in their thoughts. Flint silently ran through the conversation he wanted to have with Beachhead. Alison sensing his thoughts asked, "Are you sure you should be the one talking to Beachhead?"

Flint smiled. "Hawk asked me the same question."

"I'm not surprised. We both know, as well as most of the Joe team, how the two of you have a habit of bringing out the worst in each other."

Flint's smile grew. "And that's exactly what Hawk said. So I'm going to tell you what I told him. If I expect Beachhead to make a career sacrifice on my behalf, then I need to be the one to talk to him."

Alison went silent for a few moments. "What do you think he's going to say?"

"I think he's going to fight me at first, but eventually his desire to rejoin the Joes will win out."

"And if it doesn't? What's Plan B?"

"To be honest, I don't have one. I don't think I have another option."

Alison frowned and went quiet again. Marissa, though kept up a chatter of incomprehensible babble during the rest of the ride. Flint reached over and patted Alison's thigh. "I can't wait until I can understand what she has to say."

Alison smiled and turned to look at her daughter. That got a squeal of delight from Marissa. "Yeah, I think she's going to be quite the talker."

The two went together to drop her off at the daycare and then walked to their office. Flint didn't waste any time, and went over to Beachhead and asked him to take a walk with him. He tried to catch Alison's eye, but she was engrossed in a document she was reading.

Once they were in the hallway, Flint decided to ease into the conversation. "Did you have a nice holiday break?"

Beachhead stopped walking. "Look, Flint, cut the crap. I know you don't care about my holidays, and you need something from me, so why don't you get right down to it?"

Flint nodded. "Wayne, you're right, I do have a favor I need to ask of you. I'm not expecting you to answer right away, but I am asking you to put aside any personal issues and just consider the offer on its own merit." Flint again paused as he thought about his pre-planned well-rehearsed speech. But he decided just to be blunt. "I want to transfer to DC. Hawk already spoke to Anvil about it, and he's on board as long as they get someone to replace me in the leadership department. So I want to know if you would be interested in transferring back to the Joes."

"Yes," Beachhead answered.

Flint blinked and he wondered if he actually heard Beachhead correctly. "Do you want to take some time to think about it?"

"I don't need to think about it. I've wanted to get back to the Joe team since practically the day I arrived here. I appreciated the opportunity that Hawk gave me, but I've been itching to get back to where I belong, and that's on the Joe team."

Flint grinned. He came close to hugging Beachhead, but the Ranger put an end to that idea. "No you don't. If you need to get touchy-feely with someone, your wife is waiting for you back in our office."

* * *

Alison sat at her desk, trying to keep her simmering anger in check. She had assumed that her first day back at work was probably not going to go very well. She just hadn't expected to receive the proverbial kick in the gut at the very beginning of the day. She took deep breaths as she stared at the single piece of paper laying there. It was telling in two ways. It informed her that she had been assigned council for her upcoming hearing. Even though Alison had held on to the shred of hope that the hearing would be canceled, she knew it was extremely unlikely. The fact that she was going to have someone coaching and advising her was actually welcome news.

What wasn't welcome news was the fact that the stack of intelligence documents that normally greeted her workday was missing. Which meant to Alison that the brass had already decided on her guilt ahead of the hearing.

Hawk walked over to her desk and placed his hand on his shoulder. "Don't read too much into this. It's a temporary measure done out of an abundance of caution. Supposedly everyone that is being called to testify have been put on limited duty."

Not trusting herself to speak, Alison just nodded. A loud bang echoed from the hallway, and Alison jumped to her feet. She looked towards Hawk, who calmly waved for her to relax. "It's okay. They're rebuilding the offices, so you're going to hear those noises on and off for the near future."

Alison grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, I guess I'm still jumpy."

"Don't apologize. I did the same thing the first time I heard it. In fact I didn't believe it until I checked it out for myself."

That sounded like a good plan to Alison. "If it's okay, I'd like to do the same, since I don't exactly have any pressing assignments right now."

"Take your time," Hawk said.

Alison walked out into the hallway. Normally, she would make her way over to the daycare to peek in on Marissa, but since it was her first day back from vacation, the staff had cautioned Alison and Flint to keep their distance during the day, to give Marissa a chance to reacclimate to her routine. It had seemed like a reasonable suggestion a short time ago. However, Alison started giving serious thought to the idea of getting Marissa and bringing her home, since she apparently had no reason to be at work that day.

But just as quickly she talked herself out of the idea. She was never one to run away and hide at a problem, and the last thing she wanted was to give the Jugglers that satisfaction. She decided on a route that would take her towards the reconstruction project.

As she made her way to her destination, she came to the belated realization that both Flint and Beachhead hadn't been in the office when she had left. She guessed that Flint was having his heart to heart talk with the Ranger, and Alison hoped that his day was going better than hers. The last thing she wanted to find out was that Flint was being forced to return to the Joes.

She knew if that was the case they would again find a way to make it work. But Flint had been her rock the previous few months, and neither of them wanted him to return to his role as part time husband and father.

And she couldn't help but wonder what would happen if she was found guilty of conspiring with the enemy. She would be sent away to prison. How would Flint handle the role of single fatherhood, especially if he was sent back to the Joes?

Her thoughts abruptly came to an end as she reached the cordoned off section which had received the most damage in the Red Shadows attack. A makeshift memorial had grown since the last time she had been in the area. She went to it, to look at the names and photographs. Her tears began to fall as she looked at the lives lost and thought about all of the families destroyed.

It clarified her thoughts of the morning. Her fears for their future went beyond dealing with a long-distance relationship, or the thought of losing her job. She still carried and believed the deadly premonition from the old Scottish woman, and her greatest fear of the moment was losing her daughter or husband.

She also realized that the anger she felt at the Jugglers and the upcoming hearing, was not because she knew they were wrong, but because she was afraid they were right. Alison knew that she wasn't directly responsible for the Red Shadows attack. She had never been in contact with the group. She also had never withheld any evidence that the attack had been imminent.

What nagged at her, though, was the fact that there hadn't been any signs. Alison had become convinced that she must have missed something. It wouldn't be the first time that had happened in the intelligence community. There was so much information out there, that to find the credible threat in a sea of harmless noise was like looking for the proverbial needle in the haystack.

She was afraid, though, that her negligence was to blame. The best chance of seeing the Red Shadows fingerprints would have been around the time of the blackout. For obvious reasons, she hadn't been able to fully investigate the event due to Marissa's birth. But she should have when she had returned to work. Those first few weeks were a haze due to many sleepless nights, and she knew she hadn't given her work the full attention it deserved.

Alison looked at the memorial again as her thoughts wandered. It reminded her of the one that was at Joe HQ. She wondered if Snake-Eyes' name had been added even though he hadn't been killed in a Joe battle. If so, he would have joined Grunt, Clutch and Steeler. Nobody knew for sure if the three men had actually perished in the alternate world, but since it seemed unlikely they would ever return, their names had been put on the Joe memorial.

That ill-fated mission and the absolute devastation that had occurred in the parallel universe had consumed her thoughts the first few weeks after she had returned. Even though she had seen it first hand, it had been hard to comprehend that another world, or timeline actually existed. But eventually, as she had done with several of the other bizarre and supernatural missions, she had found a way to move on.

She wondered if Clutch, Grunt and Steeler were still alive or if they had died in the civil war against Cobra. She was hit with a familiar sense of guilt since she had voluntarily walked away from a brewing battle in that other world, and left her friends to fight it practically alone. She stayed lost in her thoughts until she heard a set of footsteps behind her.

"There you are. I've been looking all over for you." Flint joined her side and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He then exhaled sharply. "That's a sobering display."

"It is," Alison said simply. They stood in silence for a few moments. "Do you ever think about the people who were affected by actions we took?"

"I do. Most of the time I wonder If Clutch, Steeler and Grunt were given a death sentence when I left them behind."

Alison couldn't help but smile. The fact that Flint had an uncanny knack for echoing her own silent thoughts was one of the many reason why she loved him. "Those were the exact three I was thinking about. I know they chose to stay in that world, but I can't help but feel guilty that I didn't also stay behind to help them."

Flint put his hand on her arm. "You didn't belong there. None of us did. I was their CO and I should have made sure they returned with us."

Alison was going to try and soothe Flint's conscience, but she realized he was proving her point. Instead, Flint continued. "I guess I think about them the most because I actually knew them. In my darker moments, I do replay past missions and wonder about the multitude of unknowns that were in buildings destroyed, or cars that were crashed while we were battling Cobra."

Alison nodded. "Sometimes I wonder if we've done more harm than good."

"You should never think that. Yes, there has been collateral damage, but use that alternate world as an example of what life would be like if Cobra had been allowed to run rampant. You have to believe that even when things go terribly wrong, something good comes out of it."

Alison waved her hand towards the memorial. "What good can come from this?"

"I don't know," Flint answered. "But if we can get to the Red Shadows before they act again, we can prevent other people from going through this pain."

"They should have been stopped before this attack. I can't help but feel that's my fault."

"Al, don't do this to yourself. You're letting this hearing get to you. You're not a mind reader, and you don't have a crystal ball to tell you the future."

Alison shuddered as she was once again reminded of her final Joe mission to Scotland and the cryptic, haunting message about their future. "Let's hope nobody has that kind of power," she mumbled. Flint asked her to repeat herself, but she ignored the request. When she had finally told him on Christmas night about her encounter he had been skeptic at best.

Instead she continued the current conversation. "Maybe, but I haven't been at my top form this past year. Not only was I exhausted, but Marissa had most of my attention, so I wouldn't be surprised to find out that I missed something."

"In the unlikely case that's true, no one can hold you responsible. You're a new mom juggling family and a career like millions of other women out there."

Alison pointed to the memorial. "I think the loved ones of these people would. And I wouldn't blame them if they did."

Flint squeezed her shoulder. "Before you totally convict yourself, go back over the records. I bet you'll find out that there were no indications of the attack."

"I would if was allowed to, but as of now my privileges have been taken away. So despite your optimism, it looks like the Jugglers had already made their decision. Which means that we might need to at least be prepared for this outcome not going my way."

"I'm sorry they did that. I'm sure it's just a standard procedure." Flint grabbed both of her hands in his as he turned to face her. "Listen to me, no matter what happens, I'll be here for you. Beachhead agreed to my request, so I'm not going back to the Joes."

Alison felt a sense of relief as she processed the good news. She hugged him. "Thank goodness."

Flint hugged her in return. "We're going to get through this. And then we're going to find a way to make these bastards pay for this."

Alison nodded. She said a silent prayer for the victims, and then turned to walk back to their office.


	2. Chapter 2

Later that afternoon, Alison's phone rang for what felt like the hundredth time. With a sigh, she answered. She was met with a perky yet pleasant young woman's voice that temporarily disarmed her. However, as soon as the woman announced that she was the secretary of Hector Ramirez from Twenty Questions, Alison growled what had become her standard response that she was not talking to anyone from the media.

As soon as she hung up, an impeccably groomed man wearing an expensive suit approached Alison's desk. She glared at him. "If you're a member of the press, you're wasting your time. As I told every other one that has called me already today, I'm not talking."

The man smiled. "I'm afraid there is a misunderstanding. Mrs. Faireborn, I'm Robert Cooks, I've been asked to council you about your upcoming hearing."

"Please call me Alison," she replied sheepishly. She stood up and shook his hand. "I'm sorry about my outburst, but they've been harassing me all morning."

"I understand, and believe me I've heard much worse. I hope you were informed about my council?"

"Yes, I did receive the notice. However, I wasn't expecting you this soon," she replied.

He flashed her an over-emphasized smile. "Unfortunately, they moved the hearing to the day after tomorrow. I admit that hasn't given me a lot of time to review your case, but I'm a fast learner. If you're available, I'd like to spend an hour or two going over the details."

Alison looked down at her empty desk. "I'm free. How about we go to one of the offices down the hall so we can talk in private?"

Flint caught her eye. She turned towards Robert and asked, "Do you mind if my husband joins us?"

"Not at all. I'd like to speak to him as well."

The three of them found an unused office. It took a few minutes for Robert to get the paperwork he carried with him in order. Once he was ready he said, "Before we proceed we need to sign a few documents. In the interest of full disclosure, the Department of Defense is paying my fees, but my obligation is to represent you, and your best interests. You do, however, have the right to refuse my services at any point during the hearing, and hire an attorney of your own choosing."

Alison looked at Flint. They had discussed that possibility, but had decided to stay with the house council, at least through the initial stages. He nodded, and she agreed to the representation. She scribbled her signature on the required pages. Once she was done, Robert took the papers back and filed them in his briefcase. "Okay, let's move on. I have a list of questions to ask you."

Alison had assumed Robert was going to ask her about the attack on the Pentagon, but instead the questions were of a much more personal nature.

"You took this position in January of last year?" Alison nodded. "You previously were a Corporal in the US Army, stationed with the G.I Joe team. Your primary specialty was intelligence?" Alison once again nodded. Robert smiled, and looked from Alison to Flint. "I'm going to assume that's how you two met."

Alison didn't like where this line of questioning was going, but she let Robert continue. "Based on your yearly evaluations, your performance was exemplary. It's unfortunate that you were discharged once your affair was made public."

Flint reacted first. "Is there a point to this? What the hell does any of this have to do with the Pentagon attack?"

Robert leaned back and smirked. "Probably nothing. But the Jugglers are looking for a scapegoat, somebody they can throw in front of the media to appease the angry mob. A perfect contender is someone who has made questionable decisions in the past. She has an infant at home, and a husband who lives across country that she barely sees. She may not have purposely betrayed her country, but it's entirely possible that she missed a critical piece of information since she's stressed, tired and most likely overworked."

Alison pointedly looked at Flint, who violently shook his head. "I still think that's complete and utter bullshit," he growled.

"I'm sure it is," Robert said.

"But what if it's not?" Alison whispered. "What if I did miss the warning signs?"

Robert paused a moment before he answered. "Right now this is only an initial hearing. They would have to suspect that either gross negligence or treason was involved to begin the process of opening a criminal case. But I really wouldn't worry too much about jail time."

"Jail time?" Flint spit out. "Doesn't that seem a bit excessive?"

"It does. I'm just advising my client of the worst-case scenario, even if it is unlikely." Robert exhaled sharply. "Let me tell you my gut feeling on this. The Jugglers know they were caught asleep at the switch on this. But instead of admitting that, they're going through with this farce of a hearing. They'll expose a few faults, some questionable decisions, but not enough to get anyone in any kind of serious trouble. They want to convince the public that the attack happened due to mistakes that were made, and not because there is a new terrorist group that outsmarted the US government."

Alison hoped that Robert's assessment was correct. But even if the best-case scenario happened, she doubted it would assuage the guilt she carried with her. "I hope you're right. But no matter what happens I think it's going to be a long time before I sleep soundly at night again."

Flint rubbed her shoulder while Robert gave her a sad smile. "I'm afraid I can't help you with that. But if you want the names of a couple of psychiatrists I can give you a few recommendations. Let's though, in the meantime get back to my area of expertise."

Robert continued his line of questioning that outlined her recent history. He asked about Marissa's birth, their health, and their daily routine. After each answer, he scribbled notes on to a legal pad. He then turned his attention to Flint. "I have several questions of an extremely personal nature, that in order to best protect Alison, I will need complete honesty. I think, therefore, it will be best if we conduct this part of the interview one-on-one."

Alison looked at Flint, who shook his head. He grabbed her hand. "Robert, our relationship nearly came to an end because of secrets kept. I'm not willing to risk that again. Anything you need to ask me, can be asked in front of Alison."

Robert exhaled sharply. "Are you sure?" he asked Alison. Once she consented, he continued. "Over the past year, prior to the Red Shadows attack, how much time had you spent with your wife?"

"I don't have an exact number in my head. I'd try to come out every couple of weeks for a few days. Sometimes it went longer in between visits. I was here for about a month leading up to and after Marissa's birth. And she brought Marissa to Arizona for a week when she had a business trip."

Robert nodded. "So it's safe to say that you spent more time apart than together. During that time, had either one of you engaged in an extra marital affair?"

Alison laughed. "Believe me, not only did I lack the desire for one, but I had neither the time or energy."

"To be honest, that was the answer I was expecting, but the question is geared more towards your husband."

"No!' Flint roared.

"I know it's an uncomfortable question, but it has to be asked. Unfortunately, statistics show that at least one partner strays during a long-distance separation. Have you ever given your wife reason to suspect you might be engaging in an affair?"

"Not that I know of, but she can better answer that question."

Alison thought back to the time when she called Flint after a bad night and Firewall had answered his phone. She had experienced a fleeting sense of jealousy, but it hadn't been serious. "No."

Robert put down his pen and looked at her. "Alison, as I said, I need completely truthful answers. You hesitated, which leads me to believe there's more to the story."

"There really isn't. During a moment of sleep deprivation and out of control hormones, I wondered if he was attracted to a new girl on the base. I think I asked him about her, and by the end of the conversation it was forgotten."

"Which girl?" Flint asked in amusement.

"Firewall. Why, is there someone else I should be concerned about?" Alison asked while trying to suppress a smile.

"No, of course not. I just thought the night of the White House Military Appreciation Dinner was your only jealous fit."

"That was far from a fit," Alison answered with a laugh. "And if we're keeping score I have a long way to go before I reach the number of your jealousy attacks."

Robert looked from one to the other. "I asked the question because I'm trying to find out if there was anything going on in your life that might have distracted you from your job. After that conversation, I have no idea what the answer is."

Alison waved him off. "You're right that I probably had distractions in my life that kept me from being a hundred percent focused on my work. But my husband's fidelity was never one of them."

"Fair enough. But can you elaborate on what you believe those distractions were?"

Alison spent the next few minutes unloading her conscience. She told Robert about her first days on the job, when she was still reeling from the upheaval in her life. How once she settled into her new routine she still had the stress of her impending motherhood, and other minor annoyances like General Cavanaugh. She even admitted to taking a few weeks before she bonded with Marissa, and how she was afraid that she had returned to work too early. And since then she felt it had been a constant struggle to balance the needs of her daughter and the needs of her career.

Once she finished, Robert remained silent as he frantically wrote in his legal pad. Flint wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. Once Robert finished writing he asked Flint, "During the time you were with her, did you notice any behavior that concerned you? At any point did you think that she might be incapable of performing her duties as an intelligence agent?"

Flint emphatically shook his head. "Never. In fact, I was impressed with how well she was getting her job done while raising Marissa. I didn't know she had the kind of feelings she admitted to until a couple of weeks ago."

Robert made a final notation and then closed his attaché case. "Okay, I think we're done here. My professional opinion is that you don't have anything to worry about. I am going to take some time tomorrow to talk to your coworkers just to make sure we don't have any surprises. We'll meet again tomorrow afternoon to go over everything."

They shook hands, and then Robert left. Flint again wrapped his arms around her. "See, I told you, you have nothing to worry about."

Alison had to admit that the session went better than she expected, but she still had a hard time remaining optimistic.

* * *

The following afternoon Robert met with the two of them again. He led them to the designated room for the hearing in the Senate Hart Building. He wanted them to see the room ahead of time, to try to get accustomed to the settings.

At first glance, Flint could see the room was set up in a similar manner to a court martial proceeding. It didn't give him a good feeling. Robert pointed to a desk on the side of the room that Flint considered to be the prosecution side. "The team asking the questions will be sitting there. I believe the majority of the questions will be asked by Captain Alan Spencer, who is a JAG officer making a name for himself."

Robert walked over to another desk set up closer to the door. "I'll be sitting here, and when it's your turn, you'll take the stand that's in the middle of the room."

Alison nodded. Robert pulled out a sheet of paper from his stack of notes and glanced at it. He then walked over to one of the chairs in the row behind his desk. "You've been assigned chair number six, which corresponds with your order in the proceedings. Depending on how quickly they move through the list, there is the potential that you will be called to the stand tomorrow."

"I'll be ready," Alison said.

Robert then pointed to the row of chairs behind high desks at the front of the room. "The Jugglers will be seated there. The general leading the proceedings, is unfortunately General Cavanaugh. I've petitioned to have him recluse himself during your questioning to avoid a conflict of interest, but it was denied."

"Great," Alison said sarcastically. "He's probably the worst person I could have for judge, jury and executioner."

"That's a bit drastic. He'll be in charge of deciding how the questioning plays out, but he won't have the only say in the results."

Flint put his arm around Alison. "He's right. If this is anything like the court martials I have sat on, there will be an active discussion among all members to decide the outcome."

Robert nodded and then turned towards Flint. "You can watch the proceedings from the viewing area in the rear of the room."

Flint balked at the seat assignment. "I can't sit with her?"

"I'm afraid not. The Jugglers were very specific with the set-up. At least you get to be in the room with her. Many times they set up a viewing location off-site. Which is also why I can't insist enough in how important it will be to maintain your composure throughout the proceedings. You are going to hear some unpleasant things about your wife. But no matter what is said, I can't have any outbursts from you. In speaking to your colleagues, I learned that you have a tendency to fly off the handle in defense of Alison, and the last thing we need is for that to occur during the hearing. If I hear any kind of commotion from you, I will personally throw you out of the room."

Flint begrudgingly agreed, but continued to stew. A short time later Robert dismissed them with the request to try and get a good night's sleep. They picked up Marissa and drove home. Flint kept quiet about his complaints until later that evening as they finished their dinner. "It isn't a trial in a court of law, so I don't understand why I can't sit near you."

"I don't know," Alison said as she picked Marissa up out of her high chair. "But I think for now we need to play by their rules and not do anything that will make matters worse."

"Fine," Flint grumbled. "Maybe it'd better if I wasn't there at all."

Alison shot him an exasperated look. "Dash, do what you need to do. But I just don't have it in me right now to worry about your ego. I'm giving her a bath and putting her to bed."

Flint immediately regretted his words. He debated helping Alison with Marissa, but he decided she probably wanted the time alone with her. Instead he cleaned up the kitchen, and waited until Alison had nearly finished reading Marissa her bedtime story. He looked in on the two. Marissa was half asleep, nestled against her mother with her favorite blanket and bottle.

Alison finished the story and Flint reached for Marissa. With a kiss on her head, he gently transitioned her to her crib. Once he tucked her in, he reached for Alison's hand. "I'm sorry I'm such an ass."

Alison dragged him out to the hall and closed Marissa's door behind her. She put her arms around him and settled against his chest. "I know this is hard on you too. I just want it to be over."

"Hopefully, by tomorrow it will be."


	3. Chapter 3

The hearing started and it quickly became apparent that Flint's prediction was not going to come true. Most of the morning was spent on legality motions. After a long lunch, the hearing continued but they questioned only two of the subpoenaed witnesses.

They adjourned for the day. Robert joined their side on the walk back to their car. "I know you're disappointed, but I want you to know I thought it was a really good day. They didn't ask any hard-hitting questions, so it leads me to believe that as I suspected, this is just a procedural motion. You're now fourth on the list, so I expect your turn will come tomorrow."

Robert's prediction was correct. They adjourned for lunch the following day with the announcement that Alison will be called once they returned. Neither Flint nor Alison had much of an appetite, and the hour passed painfully slow. Finally the time came to continue the proceedings.

Flint returned to his seat and was happy to see a familiar face in the chair next to his. "General Hawk, you're a sight for sore eyes. But don't tell me you too have been relegated to the peanut gallery."

"I was politely and respectfully told that due to my conflict of interest, I was not allowed to sit up front."

Alison's name was called and Flint sat down. Even though he could see and hear perfectly fine, Flint leaned forward. Once Alison was settled into the witness chair, she locked eyes with him. He mouthed the words "love you" to her. She smiled, nodded, and then turned her attention to the council as she was sworn in. The first few questions asked were of a basic nature. Alison answered them calmly and clearly, and Flint began to relax. A half hour into the questioning, after Alison gave a brief outline of her duties, Captain Alan Spencer, the JAG officer Robert warned them about, stood up and asked, "Do you always follow the orders given to you?"

"Excuse me?" Alison asked.

"You are, pardon me, _were_ a soldier trained to follow your commanding officer's orders. Did you always do as you were told?"

Alison went silent. Flint could tell that she was fuming at the question. "I tried to, to the best of my ability."

Captain Spencer smiled. "I assume that means there were times you didn't?"

Robert stood up. "I'm sorry, I have to ask how is this relevant?"

"Whether or not Mrs. Faireborn is capable of following orders, especially since she is an intelligence analyst dealing with Top Secret material, is extremely relevant."

"Robert, let him continue," General Cavanaugh ordered.

Robert took his seat as Captain Spencer asked the question again. Alison exhaled sharply. "Being a good Joe agent meant having the ability to think on your feet and adapt as the mission went on. So yes, there were times when orders weren't followed precisely."

Captain Spencer nodded. He picked up one of the files on his desk. "I'm not here to question your merit as a GI Joe. Your file speaks to itself. And I understand how in the heat of battle, quick decisions need to be made. But what I am concerned about are the times when you disregarded orders that weren't during a mission. Reading through your file, one could get the impression that you're a very independent woman that is going to do what she wants, even if she's been specifically told she can't."

Flint clenched his fists below his chair. Alison was shooting daggers at Captain Spencer, but wisely remained quiet.

Robert again stood up, "Is this leading up to a question?"

"There will be. I know this is an unusual request, but can I bring a witness to the stand? I still have questions to ask Mrs. Faireborn, but first I need to clarify a few things."

"As was noted, this is not a trial in a court of law," General Cavanaugh replied. "So we do not have hard and fast rules to follow. Bring up whatever witness you need."

"Thank you. Richard Morris, can you please come up here?" Once Richard took his seat next to Alison, and was sworn in, Captain Spencer asked, "You are Alison's supervisor, correct?" Richard confirmed and Captain Spencer continued. "From what I read of your evaluations, Alison was a fast learner, and trained very quickly on her job. Did you ever have any problems with her?"

"Never," Richard answered.

"And she did all the work you asked her to do?" Richard again confirmed. "Did she ever ask to do independent research?"

"She did request in the beginning to do some searching into Cobra, and their offshoot Cobra-La. I granted the request on the condition that she took care of her primary duties first, which were always completed."

"Okay. So she would rush through her to-do list to work on her pet project?"

"I didn't say that," Richard answered.

"Fair enough. But would you say Mrs. Faireborn had an unhealthy obsession with Cobra?"

"Unhealthy? Absolutely not."

"But you still found it odd that she insisted on delving into the mythical elements of Cobra-La."

Flint had to bite back his objection. He looked over at Hawk who was muttering some choice words under his breath. The pompous lawyer-wannabe who had probably never seen a day of active combat in his life had a lot of nerve calling Cobra-La a myth.

Robert again jumped to his feet. "I think this has gone far enough. Richard has established that Alison was a model employee. What she does on her own time isn't anyone's business. Besides, this is a hearing about the Red Shadows attack, not Cobra."

"I'm just bringing up the possibility that Alison was sidetracked by her own research project, that she missed some vital intel about the Red Shadows attack. Or, there was a more sinister motive. To get to that point, thank you Richard for your testimony, I'm going to return to Alison now."

Once Richard went to his seat, and Alison returned to the stand, Captain Spencer asked, "You had a visit rather recently from a high-ranking member of Cobra?"

"Yes, but not by my choosing."

"Well, it's good to hear that you don't normally invite Destro over for Sunday dinner." Once the chuckling of the crowd died down, Captain Spencer continued. "So why did you two meet?"

"Objection," Robert called out. "This is a line of questions that wasn't expected, and I'd like a chance to confer with my client."

General Cavanaugh shook his head. "It's not our fault you didn't do your homework. Mrs. Faireborn, answer the question."

Alison remained silent for a short length of time before she answered. "On one of the Joe missions I learned that I might have been distantly related to Destro. So on the day in question, he basically kidnapped me to force a meeting between the two of us. He not only confirmed that we were indeed very distantly related, but he wanted me to sever all legal ties between us. I agreed immediately."

Captain Spencer stared her down for a few moments. "Alison, I have to say, that bit of news plus what is in your file makes for some very interesting reading. While I am loathe to reveal personal details, I do think that it should be mentioned that you were honorably discharged from the US Army due to personal reasons, is that fair to say?"

Alison growled out a yes answer.

"I have to imagine that left a bad taste in your mouth. One could even hypothesize that you might have a grudge against the military?

"Whoa, this stops right here," Robert shouted. "Nothing is going to be accomplished from this line of questioning except for the defamation of my client's character.

"I disagree," General Cavanaugh ruled. "We don't want to put anyone's character on trial. However, since we strongly suspect that the Red Shadows had an inside source, we unfortunately may need to delve into unsavory details. Captain Spencer drop the hypothesis and innuendos and ask the witness a direct question."

"Thank you General. Mrs. Faireborn do you hold a resentment against the military?"

"It's no secret that I was upset after what happened with the Joes. But I definitely don't hold a grudge big enough that I would consider betraying my country."

Captain Spencer consulted his notes. "Didn't you have a run-in with one of the Generals?"

Alison avoided eye contact with General Cavanaugh. "Yes, but that was handled."

"I see that it was. Apparently your husband threatened physical violence against him. And he was a member of the Jugglers, a group you and your former team are not very fond of, correct?"

Robert interrupted before Alison could answer. "This is getting ridiculous. So far you've done nothing but throw out a bunch of random facts that prove nothing. If you have a prevailing theory get to it, if not stop badgering my client."

"We are running out of time this afternoon, so I will cut it short. You want my theory? Despite what she said earlier, I think she does still hold ill will against the Joe team for her dismissal. She's forced to work at the Pentagon, in an office job she despises, where she is separated from her new husband. She's got a baby on the way that is only adding to her mental instability. Instead of focusing on finding the current threats, she decides to use her position chasing after old enemies, both real and imagined.

"Maybe she's looking for something to hold against her former team. Perhaps Uncle Destro asked for a favor. Maybe somebody from the Red Shadows contacted her and told her to use Cobra as an excuse for not doing her job. Or maybe she was trying to find something in Cobra's history that she could sell to the Red Shadows."

Flint finally snapped, however Hawk anticipated the move. The general grabbed his arm and forced him to remain seated. "Don't. You're only going to make things worse for her."

Alison took a few deep breaths and then turned to face the Jugglers. "I'm sorry, but that's the most ridiculous thing I heard. Why would I give the Red Shadows information that would help them attack the Pentagon? A place where I work? And if I knew when and where the Red Shadows was going to attack, why would I pick that day to start my daughter in the Pentagon's day care?"

Captain Spencer sneered. "Yes, I did find it to be quite the coincidence that your daughter's first day of day care happened to be the same day as the attack. I have to admit, that is a great way to avoid suspicion."

With a sigh and a shake of her head Alison said, "If you truly believe that I am so evil that I purposely put my infant daughter into harm's way to give me an airtight alibi, then I have no defense against that."

Robert rose. "I think we're done here."

"I agree," General Cavanaugh said. "We'll adjourn for the day and pick it up tomorrow. Mrs. Faireborn you are dismissed for now."

Flint immediately jumped to his feet. He pushed his way through the crowd to get to Alison. She looked shell-shocked, and he went to hug her, but she waved him off. "Not here, not now."

However her eyes lit up as she looked behind Flint. "General, thank you for coming. I appreciate the support."

"I'm proud of you, Alison, you did good up there. You stayed calm through some very tough questions."

"Yes, you did," Robert said as he walked over. "Let's take this outside to talk some more."

"Unfortunately I have another matter to discuss with General Cavanaugh," Hawk said. "Do you think there is anything I can do to help her case?"

"Right now, no," Robert said. "But if this proceeds any further, I might need you as a future witness."

"Whatever it takes," Hawk said.

That sounded like an ominous thought to Flint. However, he stayed silent until they were out of the building and into the parking garage.

"How bad is it?" Flint asked.

"I don't think it's as bad as you're probably thinking. I admit it was a rough set of questions, but they had nothing concrete. If they had a smoking gun, they would have used it. Instead I think they were just trying to rattle Alison."

"It worked," Alison admitted.

Flint wasn't going to be denied a second time. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. "Babe, you did great."

Alison gave him a half-hearted hug in return and then pulled out of his grasp. "Dash, it's getting late. Can you pick up Marissa and come back and get me? I want to talk to Robert a little longer."

"I can give you a ride home, and we'll talk in the car," Robert offered.

"Are you sure? Traffic could be a bear at this time."

"It's fine."

Flint reluctantly agreed to the plan. "Okay, I'll see you at home." He gave Alison a long, lingering kiss and then left.

After he was gone, Alison followed Robert to his car. She got in and once they were on the road she asked, "What happens if they decide I am guilty?"

"Alison, you're getting way ahead of yourself. As I said, I don't think they have any kind of evidence towards that."

"Humor me. I'm going to spend the rest of the time thinking worst case scenarios, so I want to know the facts."

"Okay, what I believe would happen is at the end of this hearing, they would officially announce that they suspect you of treason. If they don't have enough for criminal charges, you would probably lose your clearance and be dismissed from your job."

"And if they do have enough for charges? Will I go to jail?"

"Again, there are a lot of steps and variables involved. They may take you into custody once they bring charges against you, and if so you will have a bail hearing. You will most likely be found to not be a flight risk, so as long as you can pay the bond, you will be free until the hearing. And please don't ask me to tell you what your chances are at a trial because that is way too hypothetical to make a judgment call."

Robert glanced over at her. "Alison, listen to me. I'm not just trying to appease you, I truly believe they have nothing on you. I think they know that too, and they were just grasping at straws this afternoon."

Alison replayed the questions in her head. Robert was right, that they didn't bring up any incriminating evidence. She began to feel better about her innocence. If they didn't find any signs of negligence, maybe there weren't any.

The rest of the ride went quickly. When Robert pulled in front of her house, she saw that they had beaten Flint there. She thanked Robert for the ride home. As she walked in, she immediately dismissed the idea of cooking dinner as she didn't have the energy. She also eyed one of the bottles of the wine, but she held off on opening it. She knew once she started drinking she wasn't going to stop. Instead she pulled out a few menus from the local places. None of them looked appealing so she would let Flint decide.

He and Marissa came home a few minutes later. Alison tried to put on a happy face for them, but she felt like she was on the verge of an emotional breakdown. "Dash, I'm sorry I'm so useless tonight. Can you feed her? And pick what you what for dinner, I'll take a walk and get it."

"Really? It's below freezing outside. I can pick it up once I'm done."

"No, I need some more time to clear my head."

Alison knew Flint was doing his best to make her happy when he picked Chinese. She called in the order and then left. Flint was right that it was cold, but the walk and the chat with the talkative hostess had Alison feeling more normal by the time she returned home.

Marissa had finished her meal, and was happily playing with her toys on the floor. Alison took a seat at the table and reached for the glass of wine that Flint had poured for her. She took a couple of healthy sips. "I'm sorry for blowing you off earlier. After all the innuendos about our forbidden relationship, I didn't want to put it on display and drag you into the line of fire."

Flint reached for her hand and squeezed it. "I understand. No hard feelings."

"And I'm sorry too for abandoning you for Robert. But we had a good talk, and I'm not as worried now about spending the rest of my life in jail."

Even though she felt better after her apologies to Flint, she was still emotionally drained. She picked at her food and tried to entertain Marissa who was doing her best to get her attention. Marissa crawled over to the table, pulled on Alison's pant leg and uttered a single word, "Mama."

Alison gasped. She turned towards Flint to see if he had heard it too. His grin told her he had. Alison reached down to pick her up. "Marissa, sweetie, what did you say?"

Marissa smiled. She looked from her father to her mother and said again, "Mama."

Alison felt like her heart was bursting. She hugged her tight. "That's right, I'm Mama." She pointed towards Flint. "And that's Daddy. Can you say Dada?"

Marissa buried her face into Alison's shoulder. "That's okay. Daddy will get his day too. Thank you, kiddo. Mommy really needed to hear that today."

* * *

The hearing ended mid-afternoon on Friday. They announced that they were going to take a couple of hours to deliberate the information and would hopefully have a decision before the end of the day and the start of the weekend.

Alison hoped that would be the case. She couldn't imagine suffering through the weekend waiting on a decision about her future. She had barely slept all week, and her exhaustion was only making her stress worse. Flint suggested a walk to help pass the time, but the weather had taken a turn for the worse. There was a steady, just above freezing cold rain coming down.

Instead, Alison spent an hour pacing the hallways, ignoring all of Flint's attempts at small talk. Luckily, Hawk arrived just before the end of the day, so Flint had another outlet for his nervous energy. Mercifully, Robert came towards them a short time later to announce that Jugglers were ready to announce their decision.

After all of the anticipation, the final verdict ended up being rather anti-climactic.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for your time over these past three days. We have reviewed all of the testimony and it is our judgment that there is no evidence of any criminal wrongdoing on any of the subpoenaed parties. On Monday morning, please return to your assigned offices to continue your duties as normal. All clearances will be restored to their prior levels."

Alison sat there in disbelief. Robert was the first one to congratulate her. "It's really over?" she asked.

"It is."

She then caught a glimpse of Flint as he made his way towards her. The lopsided grin on his face was enough to convince her that what she heard was true. Unlike the other day, she eagerly accepted the hug he offered.

General Hawk too congratulated her. "Let's go back to the office to tell the others the good news."

Alison felt like she was in a daze as Flint drove over to the Pentagon. She barely heard Hawk's announcement as they entered the office. But then she was hugging Stalker, and even Beachhead came over to shake her hand. "At least now, I'm leaving on a good note."

Alison gasped. She had forgotten that Beachhead was returning to the Joe team. "You're leaving already?"

"I've got a few more things to pack up tomorrow, and then I'll be on a plane Sunday, ready for a bright and early start Monday morning."

Alison smiled. She remembered many very early mornings with Beachhead. She hoped the Joe team was prepared for the return of Beachhead. "I'm going to miss you."

"Please. I'm sure you're much more attached to the man who is taking over my desk. Do me a favor, and keep him in line."

"I will," Alison said and her smile grew. Now that Flint had a permanent position, and she didn't have to worry about losing her job, she could finally look forward to the idea of the two of them working together again.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Richard. "I'm really happy it worked out for you. I never would have forgiven myself if my testimony ended up hurting you."

"Richard, don't be silly. Everything you said was the truth."

Flint walked over and put his arm around her. "Tonight, I want to celebrate. Everyone here, you are invited over to our house for an impromptu party celebrating my lovely wife!"

A cheer went up in the room. Once Flint told everyone to also bring along their significant other, Alison pulled him aside. "Dash, I appreciate the gesture, but we don't have anything we need for a party."

"A quick trip to the liquor store, and a call to a pizzeria will take care of that."

"Okay, but what about Marissa?"

"That's why I wanted it at our house. This way she could celebrate with us!"

Alison didn't think that either she or Marissa would actually be up for much partying, but a few hours later Alison had to admit that Flint had had a great idea. The number of beers that she had consumed had probably helped her frame of mind, but she realized she was long overdue for a night where she just let loose. As she looked around her living room to her friends gathered around, she tried to remember the last time she had an evening like she was currently experiencing. Even her wedding party had been tempered by her pregnancy.

Beachhead rose from the table. "I should be going."

A chorus of 'No's sounded. Beachhead scoffed. "You and I both know that I am not the life of this party. And I do have a lot of work I need to get done before Sunday."

Alison stood up to say goodbye, and she became aware of the slight spin of the room. She really was having a good time. She walked Beachhead to the door. With a hug that Beachhead was surprisingly receptive too, she wished him well on his return to the Joe team. She then turned her attention to Marissa who was currently content sitting on Lydia's lap. But by the way she was rubbing at her eyes, Alison could tell that if she didn't get the baby to bed soon, her mood would probably quickly turn sour.

She went into the kitchen to make a bottle, and was joined by Flint. "You okay?" he asked.

"Yes. I'm going to make Marissa a bottle and then put her to bed."

"I'll take care of her."

"No, I want to. I need a break from the drinks for a few minutes, or else this night is going to turn ugly."

"Okay, let me know if you need help." Before he left, he gave her a passionate kiss. Alison could taste the beer on his breath, and she was glad that he too was enjoying himself. "Also, say the word when you're ready for me to throw everyone out so that we can continue our celebration in private."

"I will," Alison replied huskily. She was looking forward to that part of the evening.

Once the bottle was ready, she collected her daughter, helped her wave goodnight to the guests, and went to the nursery. While she readied Marissa for bed, she once again reflected on the idea that her life was back on the right path. She knew that she had been a shell of her former self, and she was glad that this particularly ugly chapter of her life had come to a close.

She laid Marissa down in her crib, and giving her a kiss she said, "Marissa, life is going to be different now. You've gotten your real mother back."


	4. Chapter 4

Alison held true to her promise. From the moment she walked into her office on the Monday morning after the hearing, she was determined to join the fight against the Red Shadows. She was no longer going to play the victim as she had, first physically while she recovered from the gunshot to her shoulder, and then mentally thanks to the proceedings.

She may have been banned from active duty in the field, but she could still attack the Red Shadows through the intelligence channels. It helped having Flint at her side. While with the Joes they had spent many hours together reviewing intelligence documents, both on-the-clock and off. Alison remembered many late-night discussions in either Flint's room or hers where they would debrief their latest missions, plan for the next, or just try to figure out Cobra's next move.

They quickly got back into a similar routine. Most of their work days were spent going through the mountain of data that had accumulated since the Red Shadows had made their name known. And then in the evening more times than not, they would continue the discussions at home.

Alison leaned against the doorway. Her attention was split between watching Marissa entertain herself in the living room, and Flint who was staring intently at his laptop screen.

"You don't find that odd?" she asked. She turned back to Marissa's blanket on the floor, and gasped when she saw the child precariously standing with her two hands grasped on the edge of the coffee table. "Look, who learned a new trick!"

Flint was on his feet within seconds. Marissa, pleased with the attention, went to wave at them, but the movement caused her to lose her balance. Luckily, she plopped down onto her diapered bottom, and not further backwards. She seemed startled by the sudden change of position, and after debating her thoughts on the matter, grinned.

Flint laid down on the floor next to her. He kept his hands behind Marissa as a spotter, as she reached for the table and began to pull herself up again. "I think she's going to be walking soon. Then she'll officially be a toddler. Maybe it's time to start thinking about baby number two."

Alison wasn't sure if Flint was being serious about the suggestion, but she was taken aback by the idea. She had weaned Marissa during the Christmas holiday, and while a part of her did miss the nursing sessions, she also had been enjoying the fact that she had gotten full control of her body back. Plus, Alison felt like she was just beginning to get the hang of being a working mother. She was in a good routine, and she couldn't see how she could fit a second baby into the mix.

Flint picked up on her thoughts, "Or we could hold off on the idea."

Alison took a seat next to him. "I really haven't given it a lot of serious thought. I feel like I've spent the time since she was born getting through each day. Now, it is a lot easier, and I love our family, but I want to enjoy the life with just the three of us a little longer before we add another."

"Okay. I'm not going to push you into anything until you are ready. I just love you and this little girl so much, that I can't help but wonder what another one of our creations would be like."

Alison ran her hand through Marissa's hair. She agreed with Flint that she was curious about what a second child would be like. She promised Flint that she would think about it.

Alison kept the thought in the back of her head as the weeks went on. Marissa's first birthday approached but they continued to spin their wheels trying to track down the Red Shadows. That was another reason for her hesitation. She wanted to make sure her full attention was devoted to finding the Red Shadows.

On the first Friday afternoon of April, another fruitless intelligence briefing came to an end. These meetings had been held every couple of days to give Hawk an update on any progress made, which seemed woefully inadequate. They had established a rough timeline of the Red Shadows movement in the past. But they were clueless to their current locale, or any potential future actions they might take. And with the six-month anniversary of the Pentagon attack approaching, tensions were extremely high as the fear of another attack grew.

Stalker and Richard had joined in on the search a few weeks prior, and having extra hands had helped. But Alison still felt like they had exhausted all the resources currently at their disposal. "I wish we could bring the Joe team in on this."

Hawk settled back into his chair. "Well, why don't we?"

"Do you think the Jugglers will okay it?" Flint asked.

"I don't see why not. They won't admit it, but the April 15th date makes them nervous. I'm sure they're going to want to do whatever it is in the best interest of the citizens of the United States." After Hawk was met with four nearly identical looks of incredulity, he altered his statement. "Or at least what gives the impression that they are. I'm going to make the call right now."

As Hawk predicted, the Jugglers okayed the request. Since time was of an essence, the Joe team touched down at Andrews Air Force Base just before lunchtime on the following Monday. Flint and Alison were there to greet them.

Falcon, Mainframe and Chuckles exited the Tomahawk, along with a young girl, her jet-black hair pulled up into two pigtails. "I assume that is Firewall?" Alison asked.

"You are correct. Still concerned about her?" Flint asked with a smirk.

Before Alison could answer she let out a gasp at the sight of the fifth person to exit the Tomahawk. "Shana! Or should I call you Scarlett again?"

Scarlett smiled as she walked over to embrace Alison. "No, at least not yet. I'm still not officially a Joe again. Hopefully the paperwork will be completed soon."

"I had no idea you were coming."

"I wasn't until Anvil made a last-minute change." Scarlett said with an exaggerated smile. "I'm sure you remember how he likes to keep us on our toes."

Alison had several follow-up questions, but she knew they had to wait. She and Flint were anxious to get started. "I set up a conference room in the Pentagon, with hopefully everything we need," Flint said. He turned towards Firewall and Mainframe. "If there's anything else you want, just ask. We weren't exactly given a blank check, but this is the most leniency we've been granted in years."

Mainframe patted the bag he carried and nodded towards a similar one that Firewall had. "We've got all of our portable gear, so we should be good."

Flint nodded. "I've ordered a lunch spread to be set up in the conference room, so that we can get right to work." They reached their cars. "Alison's has Marissa's car seat, so three of you get in with me."

Scarlett and Falcon went with Alison. Alison noticed that Firewall chose the front passenger seat next to Flint, and smiled. She believed Flint that he had no interest in the young hacker, but Alison had a suspicion that maybe Firewall had a crush on him.

"Ooh, a bag of Cheerios," Falcon said from the back seat. "Is this our pre-lunch snack?"

Alison asked. "It's my emergency stash in case Marissa gets hungry or cranky in the car. But if you want it, you can have it."

"You should have some since you were awfully cranky on the ride over," Scarlett said with a smirk.

"Ha ha," Falcon replied. He settled deeper into the back seat. "But since we've been burning the midnight oil all weekend, I do need a nap."

Within a few seconds, Falcon was snoring. Alison glanced at Scarlett. "I guess it's been a while since we talked. What else is new?"

Scarlett smiled. "I know, and I'm sorry about that. But you know how boot camp is. Once you get shipped away, you're basically incommunicado."

"You voluntarily went through boot camp again?"

"Unfortunately, it was a requirement when I reenlisted." Scarlett gazed out the window. "I was at the dojo with two of my brothers when the Red Shadows attacked the Pentagon. I never felt so helpless. I literally couldn't do anything to help. The next day I walked into the nearest Army recruiting office and signed again on the dotted line."

"Wait a minute," Alison said. "I know I was a little out of it thanks to my injury, but when we talked a couple of days after the attack, I don't remember you saying anything about going back into Army."

"I purposely kept quiet. At the time I was afraid I wouldn't make it past the early stages, so outside of my family I didn't want anyone to know."

"You actually doubted yourself?"

"You saw me at Snakes memorial. Did I look like I was at the top of my game? Plus, I'm a lot older now. But, I did make it through. Once I graduated I requested to be assigned to the Joe team. The paperwork still hasn't cleared, but I moved in last week."

"Back into our old suite?"

"No, Firewall is in there now. So I moved in with Court. I don't think she was too happy, as she had gotten quite used to having the place to herself. She tried to pull the seniority card, but I basically said there was no way I was living with Firewall."

Alison laughed. "She does seem like a piece of work."

"No, don't get me wrong, she's a sweet kid. But that's the point. She's barely out of high school. She's one of those super geniuses that are too smart for college, so she dropped out after a semester. She's a computer whiz, and was doing quite well for herself until she got caught hacking into one of the government sites."

"If she's so good, I'm surprised she got caught."

"That was Mainframe's doing. He's very proud of the elaborate trap he had set. So the two of them have been involved in a game of one-upmanship since she arrived. I honestly don't know when she sleeps, which is why I knew rooming with her wasn't going to work."

They arrived at the Pentagon, and Falcon awoke as soon as the car turned off. They joined up with Flint and the others and walked to the conference room. Alison had spent the morning laying out on the white boards the current timeline and theories they were working from. Chuckles scanned the boards, picked up an eraser and a marker and began to make edits.

Alison watched him work. Flint brought her a sandwich from the food trays in the back, and she ate it while she contemplated the new information. Chuckles reached one juncture where he erased a majority of Alison's notes. She nodded. "That was a big question mark for us, and what was there was my best guess at their movements."

Falcon joined them. "We were completely in the dark until we got the information from the Dark Web."

Alison whistled. "Isn't that a big black hole of debauchery? How did you navigate through that mess?"

Falcon cocked his thumb towards the grinning Firewall. "Little Miss Innocent over there has a lot of connections."

"I'm impressed. I heard most of the sites on there are unhackable."

"Nothing is unhackable," Firewall said. "And to be honest, once I got past the initial defenses…"

"Which was my doing," Mainframe added.

Firewall rolled her eyes. "Our doing. Anyway, their encryption codes weren't that complex. I think a lot of these sites are thought to be unhackable based more on reputation as opposed to actual security."

"That, and it's pretty well known that if they catch you, you end up as either fish fodder in the bottom of the ocean, or buried next to Jimmy Hoffa," Mainframe said.

"Who?" Firewall asked.

With a laugh, Alison turned her attention back to Chuckles writing. She had gotten excited by the new lead, but it quickly became apparent that despite the added piece of the puzzle, they still weren't any closer to finding the Red Shadows current whereabouts. "Looks like we still have a lot of work to do," Alison said.

They worked throughout the afternoon, and the hours passed by quickly. Alison was engrossed in a document so she didn't hear Flint approach. She startled as he put her hand on her shoulder. "I'm going to go pick up Marissa."

"Already?" Alison asked. She gasped as she looked at her watch. "I didn't realize how late it was. I guess we should call it a night?"

"No, if you're up to it, stay at it. We've got a good rhythm going here. I've already talked to Falcon, and they want to keep going for a couple more hours."

"Okay, thanks."

She ended up staying until well into the night. They finally had a crack in the case when Firewall and Mainframe followed a money trail to a location in Springfield, Missouri. "A large piece of property just outside the city limits was purchased by an outfit we're convinced is the Red Shadows holding company," Mainframe explained.

"Unfortunately many of the specifics had been redacted, but if you give me some time I can get the information," Firewall added.

"They may not be necessary," Alison said. She began to rummage through her stacks of paper looking for an address in Missouri that she knew she had seen a few times. "2337 Orbac Trail."

Scarlett looked up from her stack of paperwork and said, "That address sounds really familiar."

"Probably because it's one of the many anagrams of Cobra," Alison said. "That's why I highlighted it."

"No, it's more than that," Scarlett said.

Stalker snapped his fingers. "Isn't that the location of the original Extensive Enterprises headquarters?"

"The original?" Alison asked.

Scarlett stood and walked over to look at the laptop screen. "Yes, I think you're right. It was before they hit the big time. We went to check it out once we started to suspect they were getting into bed with Cobra. It was one of the Joe team's first missions."

Alison's mind raced through the various scenarios. "So either the Twins sold it to a like-minded financial backer of terrorist groups, or they went into business together to fund deeper off-the-book operations."

"This is good work," Falcon said. He looked at his watch. "It's late so why don't we call it quits. We'll keep going in the morning, but in the meantime I'll pass this information on to Anvil. He can send a team to investigate."

As they gathered their things, Alison turned to Scarlett. "Do you want to come and stay at our place?"

"No, I'll head to the hotel with the others. I'm sure Flint and Marissa are sleeping, so I don't want to disturb them."

Scarlett was correct, and Alison walked into a silent house. She quietly checked on Marissa, and then crawled into bed next to Flint. He rolled over and put his arm around her. "Get any leads?" he asked sleepily.

"We did," Alison replied. She waited for his response before she expounded on her answer. However, he started breathing deeply so she knew his debriefing would have to wait for morning. It took a long while before her brain settled down enough to allow her to fall asleep as well.

She awoke the next morning, and when she noticed the time, she startled and jumped out of bed. Flint was already up and she could hear him moving around in the living room. She was pleasantly surprised to see that Marissa was already dressed and eating her breakfast. She gave Marissa a kiss on her forehead. The baby grinned and then offered her a slimy fist of wet Cheerios. "Thanks, sweetie, but I'll wait for my own breakfast."

She then gave Flint a deep kiss. "Thank you for doing all this. I didn't even hear the alarm go off."

"Because it didn't. I woke up early, and turned it off. I figured you might need a little extra sleep due to your late night. So did you say you had a lead, or did I dream that?"

Alison smiled. She poured a cup of coffee and sipped it as she got Flint up to speed.

"It sounds like it's a start at least," Flint said. "You did good work."

"It was a team effort." Alison replied. "I'm going to take a quick shower and then we can ride in together."

Once in the car, Flint said. "I talked to my parents last night. They mentioned again how they would love to spend Marissa's birthday with us."

Alison instantly went on the defensive. "Dash, with everything going on, we can't just pack up to fly to Kansas right now."

"I know, and I told them that. But I did offer to have them come here."

Normally Alison would balk at the suggestion. But she immediately saw the upside. "That's not a bad idea. If they don't mind staying with Marissa during the day, we can keep her out of daycare that week. Just in case," she added.

"That's what I was thinking. I still don't think the Red Shadows will attack the Pentagon again, but I don't want to take the chance."

They arrived at the Pentagon, but before bringing Marissa to the daycare, they brought her to the conference room to show her off to the Joes. However, Marissa didn't take well to the group of people and let out a shriek as she clung to Alison.

"Wow, she's a screamer," Falcon said. "Who would have thought coming from you two?"

"Funny," Flint said. He put his arms out to take Marissa. "I'll bring her to daycare."

"No, I'll do it. Stay here and get caught up," Alison said.

"I'll come take the walk with you," Scarlett said.

Once in the hallway, Marissa got over her stranger anxiety and reached for Scarlett. With a smile Scarlett took her. Marissa babbled as she pat Scarlett's cheeks.

"I don't understand ninety nine percent of what she says, but I'm pretty sure one of the words she just said was 'pretty'."

"Why thank you Miss Marissa. I'm flattered."

Marissa smiled, grabbed a fist-full of Scarlett's hair and yanked. Alison gasped and frantically worked to free Scarlett from her daughter's clutches. "I'm sorry, I should have warned you that she's a hair puller."

"It's okay." Scarlett shifted Marissa to her left hip and moved her ponytail to her opposite shoulder. "She's gotten so big since the last time I saw her. And if I remember right someone has a birthday coming up!"

Alison smiled and ruffled Marissa's hair while she squealed. "On the sixteenth."

"Do you have any big plans for it?"

Alison shook her head. "Not really. Dash's parents are coming in for the occasion, so we'll think of something."

Scarlett smirked. "Good for you. You managed to mention his parents without grimacing. Does this mean you're actually looking forward to their visit?"

"In a way I am. If they're up to it, we're going to keep Marissa home with them during the week. So that'll be one less thing to stress about. But don't worry, I'm sure they'll still get on my nerves. Especially if Marie starts dropping not so obvious hints that she's ready for another grandchild."

"Have you given any thought to another baby?" Scarlett asked.

"To be honest, I've been battling my own thoughts on the subject. Dash is ready, but I'm not sure I am."

They reached the daycare. Scarlett waited outside, while Alison dropped Marissa off. She gave her daughter a hug and a kiss and then joined Scarlett in the hallway. Before they began the walk back, Alison hesitated outside the door. "This is always the hardest part of my day. Whenever I drop her off, I think of the day the Red Shadows attacked and the panic I felt for her. I couldn't keep her safe that day, so how do I protect two?"

"Alison, that's something I'm sure every parent grapples with. But the fear of a tragic event shouldn't stop you from bringing a child into this world."

"I know. But what if I received a particularly ominous sign from beyond?"

"What kind of sign?" Scarlett asked.

"I know you're going to think I'm crazy just like Dash does, but I know what I saw and heard." Alison recapped chasing after the woman she thought was the Baroness in disguise, but then coming face to face with an old Scottish woman who correctly guessed her pregnancy. "She said a group in the shadows was going to destroy our happiness. Doesn't that sound like she meant the Red Shadows? I went into labor during the blackout, and Marissa's first day here was the day they attacked. Maybe it's just a hell of a coincidence, but I still can't help but think we're somehow connected. And that something even worse is going to happen."

Scarlett frowned and Alison braced herself to be on the receiving end of a healthy dose of skepticism. However, Scarlett surprised her. "My natural instinct is to give you a pep talk that you might be skewing this encounter to meet your narrative. But since I too have had my share of dealings with supernatural beings, I believe you saw what you saw, and heard what you heard.

"But that said, I still don't think you should make major life decisions on a vague prophecy. I assume she didn't give you specifics as to when and how?" Alison shook her head, so Scarlett continued. "Maybe then the attack on the Pentagon was what she meant in her warning. You were shot, and if the bullet had gone slightly astray, you and I wouldn't be having this conversation."

Alison rubbed at the scar on her shoulder, as she considered Scarlett's suggestion. "Maybe you're right. But what if there is something even worse coming down the road?"

"Then don't you want to go out knowing you lived life to fullest?"

Alison smiled. "I really think you missed your calling as a psychiatrist."

"Good thing for you, because you wouldn't be able to afford my fees. However, if you do want to pay me back, you could always name your next baby Shana if it's a girl, or Shane if it's a boy."

"Shane might be difficult as I believe Flint has a long list of potential names for his son."

"He's not still being Neanderthal-like with the idea of a son carrying on the family name?"

"Don't worry, Marissa has him wrapped around her tiny finger, so I know any disappointment he may have felt is long gone. But I know he's still wants to even the male/female ratio in our house."

They began the walk back, and Alison contemplated the idea of expanding their family. She had to admit she was excited about the idea. But she put her excitement in check. They still needed to tackle the immediate problem of the Red Shadows. She entered the conference room, with a smile towards Flint. She now had extra motivation to bring an end to that threat.


	5. Chapter 5

Flint navigated the rings of the Pentagon as quickly as possible. It was a beautiful spring day outside, and he had been having lunch with Alison and Marissa in the courtyard in the center of the Pentagon. But then he had gotten the message from Hawk to meet him in their office as soon as possible.

He felt guilty leaving Alison to handle the parenting duties on her own, but he had been waiting for the summons from Hawk for a few hours. The Joe team had returned to HQ a couple of days prior to bring the intel they had uncovered to Anvil. The general had acted on it immediately, sending Duke and a team to the former EE headquarters before the day was out. Flint had been waiting on news on the mission, which is why he assumed Hawk wanted to meet with him.

Hawk looked up from his desk as Flint entered. "Good, you're here. Close the door behind you."

Flint was taken aback by need for secrecy. He had a feeling that the news wasn't going to be good. "Did you hear from Duke's team?"

"We did. And it appears that it was nearly a complete success. The Twins had been long gone, but they left behind a virtual treasure trove of intel regarding the Red Shadows."

"Then why does it only appear to be successful?" Flint asked.

Hawk handed him a large stack of paper. "I'm going to let you be the judge of that. This is the initial rough data that has come in."

Flint's interest was piqued, so he quickly scanned through the documents. The implication of the information held within hit him quickly. "This is basically a list of all the Red Shadows hideouts. And the Twins just left it sitting there?"

"You now understand my skepticism. The Jugglers believe Xamot and Tomax had been double-crossed and therefore decided to burn the Red Shadows. You and I both know from our dealing with the Twins that their top priority has always been themselves, so it's entirely possible. However, I would be remiss if we didn't treat this as a potential trap."

"I agree with all of that. So what's the plan going forward?"

"The Jugglers want to run with this. The CIA is working double-time to vet this intelligence. The Joes are preparing to launch teams once they have the information. But they need help."

Flint nodded. "Okay. When do I leave?"

General Hawk put up a hand. "Let me finish. You are correct that Anvil reached out to me to see if he could borrow you. The CIA is fairly confident that they have one primary target with two secondary locations worth checking out. Duke has his hands full in Missouri, which means the Joes are short a leader. Falcon doesn't have the experience to lead a mission this critical, so he will be leading the team that will go to one of the secondary targets. Beachhead will head up the other. Both Anvil and I are in agreement that you should lead team Alpha that will go to the primary site. This is not a knock against Beachhead's abilities, but since there are a lot of unknowns going into this, you have the better skills to react to whatever situation you encounter."

Flint's heart began to race. This was a mission he had spent his whole career working towards. He would be the CO on the team that took down the newest terrorist threat to the United States. "Sir, I would be honored to lead this."

Hawk held up his hand. "I knew you would be. I'm sure your adrenaline is pumping. Believe me, I understand that, as I wish I was about fifteen years younger so that I could lead this charge. But you have to also understand how dangerous this mission is. You're basically going off half-cocked on very questionable intelligence. And as we talked about earlier, this could all be a set-up to lead you right into the Red Shadows hands."

Flint digested the information. Memories of being held captive by Mindbender were still fresh in his mind. Captivity was bad enough, but there were even worse outcomes.

"But to answer your question, you'll be leaving for HQ in the morning, and then be wheels up shortly after you land there." Hawk rose and patted Flint on the shoulder. "Take some time to digest all this. I'm going to take a ride over to Langley to see if I can fast-track their efforts."

Flint flipped back to the first page of the report, and started reading. By the end, the danger in the mission was clear to him. He finished it and then leaned back to think. His initial reaction hadn't changed. He still wanted in. Even if it was egotistical, he agreed with Hawk that he was the best fit for this mission. Beachhead was an accomplished soldier, a dedicated leader, and one to follow an order to the letter of the law. But this mission would require intelligence and finesse, which were two areas that Beachhead lacked in.

Duke too had Beachhead's strengths, as he had proven in all the years he had been Top of the Joe team. But while Hauser was smart, and a tactician, Flint knew he was better in both regards. And with the injuries Duke had suffered the last few years, Flint could see that he had slowed down a bit and was no longer the top of his game. He understood why Hawk and Anvil wanted to keep Duke in Missouri.

So he was the obvious choice, however, this was the most dangerous mission he had been on in months, if not years. There was a very real chance that he would not come home. He would leave Alison a widow, and Marissa fatherless. Flint looked at the clock. He didn't have much time to get his affairs in order.

* * *

Alison returned from dropping Marissa off at daycare and was met with her closed office door. She had been running through various scenarios ever since Flint received the call from Hawk. She just hoped that they weren't going to be hit with bad news.

"We still locked out?" Stalker asked as he walked down the hallway.

"Looks that way," Alison answered.

"They've been in there a good ten minutes. Do you know what's going on?" Stalker asked.

"No. Flint got a message to meet with Hawk, but he didn't say why. I'm guessing this has to be a Red Shadows update. But I don't know why there's so much secrecy involved."

"I'm sure you'll have your answers soon. I'm going to take another lap."

Shortly after Stalker left, the door opened and Hawk walked out. He smiled at her. "I'm heading over to pay the CIA a visit. We've received a gold mine of intel from Duke's mission that they are sorting through. I'm going to see if they could kick things up a notch."

Alison looked from her office to Hawk and made a quick decision. While she did want to talk to Flint and find out what was going on, the chance to accompany Hawk was too tempting. If what she suspected was true, that Flint was being tasked to head up a mission to go after the Red Shadows she knew she could better help by seeing for herself the data the CIA was working on. "Can I come with you?"

"I hoped you'd ask. I'll get you up to speed on the way."

Hawk kept his promise and as soon as they were in his car headed towards Langley, he recapped Duke's mission and the data they had received. Once he finished Alison took a moment to digest all the information. "This all seems like good news, so why do I have the feeling that you don't feel the same way?"

Hawk kept his face neutral as he focused on the drive. "I don't want to sway you in anyway. I want you to take a first-hand look at what we have and then tell me what you think."

Once they arrived at the CIA Headquarters, Hawk's credentials quickly got them through security and where they needed to be. The team working on the fact-finding mission introduced themselves. Hawk did the same and Alison was honored to hear herself described as one of the best in the intelligence field.

They put her right to work. She was given access to a computer that allowed her to see the data fresh from analysis. She submerged herself in the reading, and paid no attention to the passing of time until she felt Hawk' hand on her shoulder. "What are your thoughts?"

Alison shook herself out of her revelry. She noticed that an hour had passed since she started. "When I first started reading, I was afraid that it was presenting too much as a set-up and the more I saw the more convinced I became."

Hawk nodded grimly. "You're not the only one that feels that way. But unfortunately you are in the minority and on the wrong side of the Jugglers."

"So they're still going ahead with the mission?"

"The initial stages are still a go. Which means Flint is scheduled on the first flight to HQ tomorrow. They'll make the final decision within twelve hours."

Alison stood up. "I need to get back. I'll take a cab if you still have work to do here."

"No, I'm done as well."

Instead of going directly back to the Pentagon, Hawk stopped at one of the small parks on the way there. "Come with me. I want to take a walk."

Alison was surprised by the action. She looked at her watch and was concerned with how late it was getting. Hawk guessed at her concern. "It'll only be a few minutes. I'd like to talk to you about a problem I currently have."

Once again Alison couldn't say no to Hawk, so she got out of the car and went to Hawk's side. They walked a few feet down a trail before Hawk spoke. "I've been struggling with my options ever since I heard about the mission. I'm still not sure what the right answer is." He stopped walking and shook his head.

Hawk's vague statements were nothing new to her. When it came to military matters, he easily made hard and fast decisions that were seen as brilliant in retrospect. But whenever personal issues were involved, it seemed that Hawk strove to be as non-committal as possible. Alison decided to help him out. "Flint's mission? Are you thinking about stopping it?"

Hawk shook his head. "I don't have that kind of power. I could talk to Anvil, and if he agrees with me, we could present a unified front of our opinions, but the Jugglers still make the final call. I do though, have a little more control over the people in my direct command."

"You could hold Flint back?"

"Obviously, I will face a lot of backlash, but that isn't a concern of mine. Flint will probably catch some flack as well, but the main consequence is that the Joes will have to pick a less qualified field commander for the mission."

Phrased like that it was obvious what the correct answer was. However, Alison couldn't help but consider the opposite action. Hadn't they sacrificed enough? Wasn't it someone else's turn? They were finally at a point where they could live together and raise Marissa as a team, and work on expanding their family. The idea of she and Marissa spending the rest of their lives without him was too painful.

And she was going to be damned if the Jugglers and the Army was going to take something else away from her. She turned towards Hawk. "I've got to talk to Flint."

Hawk opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it. "Okay, let's get back."

Once Alison returned to her office she found Flint and Stalker deep in conversation that stopped as soon as she entered. "There you are, I wondered where you disappeared to," Flint said.

"I need to talk to you," she said.

Hawk and Stalker excused themselves, leaving the two alone in their office. "Hawk told me he can refuse Anvil's request."

Flint's face darkened. "That's not an option."

"Why not? All indications point to the fact that this a trap the Red Shadows has set for you. Shouldn't we at least discuss the idea of you not running off into certain death?"

"Alison, from what I hear, this mission is still a go whether I'm in charge or not. So what am I supposed to do pass the buck to Beachhead or Falcon? How do I live with myself if they and the rest of their team are killed in action while I took a pass?"

Alison sighed. That was a consequence that she didn't want to live with either. But it still seemed less worse than the alternative. "But at least you will get to see your little girl grow up."

Flint reached for her and pulled her into his arms. "Believe me, the idea of not having that chance devastates me. But it can't stop me from doing my job. I know I can handle anything the Red Shadows throw at me. Professionally speaking only, don't you agree?"

Alison felt like she was punched in the gut. The professional versus personal question was not a new one for them. But this time, she couldn't do it. This mission was too dangerous, and there was too much at stake. "I can't answer that."

"Yes you can," Flint replied. "Hawk said I was the best fit for this team. I agree with him. But since we both know I sometimes have a bit of an ego problem I want to know what you think. And I need you to answer it from the viewpoint of my co-worker and not my wife."

Alison frowned and shook her head. She felt like she was signing his death warrant. "Hawk's right. You're a logical choice."

Alison debated making one last ditch effort to change Flint's mind by bringing up the Scottish woman's prophecy. But she remembered Scarlett's advice of not using that brief encounter to base major life decisions on. She hugged Flint. "Do you still have work to do, or can we go home?"

"No, I'm done. Let's get Marissa and have a nice evening together."

On the way to pick her up Flint said, "I think you should reconsider meeting up with my parents."

Alison cringed. "Join them on their Great American Road Trip from Kansas to DC?" She could have made a disparaging comment about how that was the last thing she would ever want to do, but she had a better excuse to use. "Besides the fact that I'm not going to go on a sightseeing trip while you risk your life saving the world, I have my own work to do to help out this mission. If you're worried about Marissa being at the Pentagon at this time, I can see if Lydia will watch her for the few days until your parents arrive."

"I'm not worried about her. I'm worried about you."

Alison bristled at the comment. With Flint's impending departure, her emotions were already raw. But she didn't want to spend their last few hours together fighting over the fact that she wasn't a damsel in distress. "Dash, I can protect myself."

"I know you can, you've proved that time and time again. But I'm still afraid that while I'm off trying to hunt down the Red Shadows, they bring the fight here. Or that I fail and they bring repercussions against you."

Alison didn't have a response. That was a worst case she didn't even want to consider. She reached for his hand and did his best to reassure him.

They arrived at the daycare and Alison handled the sign-out procedure while Flint went to get Marissa and her day bag. He kept a stoic face, but she could tell that he was fighting with his emotions. Marissa was especially excited to see her father and gave him a smile and a hug as he reached down to pick her up.

 _Your daughter will bring great joy to you and your husband. Enjoy what times you have together, for there won't be many._ _There will be sadness and misfortune once the evil in the shadows is known._ Alison shook her head to clear the old Scottish woman's words from her head.

* * *

Later that night Flint laid in bed while he pondered morbid thoughts. He turned over to face Alison, and saw that she was finally asleep. He didn't want his tossing and turning to wake her, so he quietly got out of bed. He threw on a pair of shorts and walked out into the hallway. He was going to go into the living room, but he decided that instead, he wanted to go to Marissa's room and check on her.

He opened her door and quietly walked over to her crib. The little night light in the room gave off just enough light that he could see her, sleeping heavily with her arms raised above her head. She looked like she didn't have a care in the world, and he hoped that she could hang on to that as long as possible.

Marissa's innocence is what fueled his desire to take down the Red Shadows. He had wanted to take them down the first moment he had heard the Pentagon had been attacked. That desire for vengeance only became worse when he saw Alison and Marissa huddled together in the daycare. Those bastards not only attacked the country he loved, but his family.

There were still many nights when he woke up in cold sweats thinking about what could have happened that day. What if they had gone after the daycare? What if the bullet that hit Alison had been just a few inches lower? He had been lucky, where so many others had not. His military brothers and sisters had been killed, and there were families still grieving them. He knew he couldn't let the Red Shadows get away with that.

"Marissa," Flint whispered. "If I don't come back, I hope you know I'm doing this for you. And I hope you know how much your daddy loves you." Satisfied with his goodbye he went to leave, but he again changed his mind. He took a seat in the rocking chair.

It was soothing in her room, with the dim lighting and with the small dehumidifier running. He willed his body to relax, but he still couldn't shake the thoughts that had been plaguing him all night. These self doubts were new to him. Being killed on a mission was a danger that he always knew existed. When he first joined the Joe team, he believed he was ready to die for his country. He knew his family would have mourned him, but he figured they would console themselves with their knowledge that he had died a hero. He had also been young and naïve and full of enough self confidence that he truly didn't think it would ever happen to him.

As his time on the Joe team continued, he quickly learned the realities of war. It didn't change his resolve. He loved his country, and if he was killed trying to keep it from harm, than it was a sacrifice he was willing to make. It became harder once his relationship with Alison deepened. He not only could see the worry on her face when he would leave, and the relief when he came back, but since she too was doing the same job he knew exactly what it felt like to have a loved one in danger. But they had numerous conversations over the years about how they hated seeing the other at risk, but they both knew it was a fact of Army life. He knew that if the worst did happen to him, she would be devastated, but eventually she would move on.

Now, though, there was more at stake. Not only would Alison's life be forever changed, but so would Marissa's. He imagined her growing up without him. What hurt him the most was that she wouldn't even remember him.

The bedroom door opened. "Dash?" Alison asked in a whisper. She walked over to him. "Is she okay?"

"She's fine. I couldn't sleep. I didn't want to bother you, so I came in here. I just wanted to watch her for a little while."

Alison gave him a sad smile. "I can't sleep either. If you're done, I'd like you to come back to bed."

He nodded. She reached her hand out to him and he grabbed it. They both gave one last look at Marissa, and then went back to their room. They climbed into bed and he pulled her close. Flint had spent the whole evening putting up a brave face, trying to reassure Alison that all would be okay. But now, with the clock ticking away to when he needed to leave he knew he was running out of time to get his affairs in order.

"You know where my will is? It was updated a few months ago to include Marissa."

"Oh, Dash," Alison said. She rubbed at his arm. "Don't worry about..."

He cut her off. "No. I need to do this. Please, I'd feel better if I knew you were taken care of, and my," he paused and sighed, "last wishes were known."

Alison's eyes filled with tears. "Yes. I have both of our wills."

"Okay. And I know my parents are a bit much, but please keep Marissa in their lives as much as possible."

"I will." Alison let out a squeak that Flint knew meant she was fighting back her tears. He kissed her forehead.

"Thank you. And make sure she knows how much I love her. Feel free to embellish some of your stories about me. I'd like her to think she had the best father ever."

A tear ran down Alison's cheek. "I don't need to lie about that."

He again leaned over to kiss her. Things had gotten very heavy, so he decided to break up some of the tension by teasing her. "I know you're going to have needs, so I'm okay with you remarrying. Just don't pick Ace, or Alpine, or Shipwreck, or really any of the Joes. I think a nice boring accountant would be perfect for you."

It worked and Alison let out a laugh. But then it turned into a sob. "Dash, it's going to be fine. It has to be. I can't lose you."

"I know. I'm not ready to buy that farm just yet. You and Marissa are going to be my motivation to keep me alive out there. But just in case…"

Alison nodded and then came close for a long, deep kiss. "If you're up to it, can you make love to me again?"

Flint was more than ready for another round. When it was over, Alison leaned against him. "I was going to wait a little longer to tell you this, but as you pointed out, we shouldn't waste the present. I went off my birth control. So for all we know we could have just conceived our next baby."

Flint kissed her stomach. "I hope it did work, and that's my son in there. Because those last couple of times felt like a boy."

Alison laughed and shook her head. "It's good to see that you'll never change."

Finally content that his legacy was safe, Flint fell asleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Three days after Flint's departure, Alison left work a couple of hours early to go home to prepare for his parents' arrival. Even though she knew there was a slim chance of hearing any new information regarding the Joes' missions, she felt guilty leaving early. They had heard from Falcon earlier that morning that his mission had turned into a bust. Beachhead hadn't officially called his mission a bust as well, but all indications were pointing that way. Flint was the only one they hadn't heard from since they had been on radio silence since their arrival in Montana.

She got Marissa settled in the living room moments before her doorbell rang. "Grandma and Grandpa are here," Alison announced. She went to the door as Marissa crawled behind her.

"Hello, Marie," Alison said as she hugged her mother-in-law. "Did you have a good trip?"

Marie ignored the question as she squealed at the sight of Marissa. She reached down and picked the baby up. After she had lathered her granddaughter in a number of kisses she answered the question. "The first few days were wonderful, the last few, not as much." She gave a pointed look at her husband who grumbled under his breath.

Alison didn't ask for specifics, as she didn't want a ringside seat to an argument between Flint's parents. Instead she asked them if they wanted a drink.

"I brought my own," Nate said as he flashed a six pack. He opened one of the bottles and then took a seat on the couch.

Marie rolled her eyes. "I'd like a glass of wine if you have it."

Alison was glad she stocked up. "Red or white?" After Marie responded with white, Alison went into the kitchen to pour a glass.

Marie followed her in. "Where is Dash? Is he still at work?"

"Not exactly. He's out on a mission." She handed the glass of wine to Marie and grabbed a bottle of water for herself.

"A mission? I thought he gave up field work."

"For the most part, he did. However, we are still associated with the Joe team, so from time to time he might be asked to lead a team."

"Really? There was no one else that could do it?"

Alison sighed. She had expected a grilling from Flint's mother and so far she was living up to her expectations. She decided to keep to the simplest explanation. "It's a very special mission that needs his talents."

Nate entered the kitchen. Marie looked from him to Alison. "Where is he? What is he doing?"

Alison sighed. "I really can't say. It's classified."

Marie quickly turned hysterical. "Classified? That means dangerous. How could you let him go? He has a daughter that needs him."

Nate put a hand on his wife's shoulder. "Marie, please calm down. I think you're jumping to conclusions."

"Calm down? Jumping to conclusions? Our son is out fighting a war."

"That may be, but we don't know the whole story."

Alison couldn't help but feel guilty. "And I'm sorry that I can't tell you more. I don't even know all of the details, other than right now he is safe."

Marie's shoulders sagged. "I thought he had given this lifestyle up. When he was with the G.I. Joe team, I knew he was doing dangerous work, but I never knew exactly when he was out risking his life." She looked at Alison. "How do you do it?"

"It's not easy, but I've had a lot of practice," Alison replied honestly. "It helps knowing that Dash is doing what he loves, which is fighting to keep us safe."

Marie began to cry. "He didn't even call us to say goodbye."

"He wanted to. But this mission was extremely top secret, and we couldn't even give the hint that it was happening."

Nate squeezed his wife shoulder while he reached for Alison's hand. "We have to stay positive that all is okay."

Alison nodded and smiled at her father-in-law and she was happy to see that Marie begrudgingly did the same.

Nate nodded. "Good. How about we get something to eat? I'm starving."

Marie with a sob and a few choice words for her husband ran from the room. As Nate went after her, Alison rubbed at her temples. This visit was going to be a lot harder than she expected.

* * *

Flint walked out of the cabin that they had turned into their main base of operation. The Joes had taken up residence in the national forest southwest of Missoula, a couple of miles from the suspected Red Shadows complex. Their initial orders were to keep surveillance on the property to confirm that high ranking members of the Red Shadows were in the area. Leatherneck and Lowlight were currently on their watch shift and were due to return within the hour. Flint would then take up the watch with Gung-Ho.

He felt like he had been in a continuous holding pattern for the last few days. They had been sending their surveillance images to HQ and waited while they were analyzed. At first Flint had welcomed the news that the standing order was to not rush into a firefight until they had better intel. But as the time ticked by, Flint began to grow antsy as he felt their time was being wasted. It didn't help that Marissa's birthday had come and gone and since they were under strict orders to maintain radio silence with everyone except Breaker at HQ, he hadn't been able to talk to Alison.

His thoughts were interrupted by what sounded like more than one individual rushing through the surrounding woods in a high rate of speed. Flint readied his weapon. He wanted to be prepared in case it wasn't Leatherneck and Lowlight returning. And if it was, something had given them a reason to double time it back.

Leatherneck came out of the clearing first, and seeing Flint with his shotgun raised, put his hands in the air. "Stand down, Flint. Sorry for all the commotion but we think we finally got the proof we need."

Flint walked into the cabin with Leatherneck and Lowlight. Inside, Gung-Ho and Firewall were intently studying one of the computer screens. Based on the way they both recoiled with Firewall quickly typing away at the keyboard, Flint guessed they weren't busy with work.

"We have some photos you should take a look at." Lowlight said.

Leatherneck handed the camera to Firewall who connected it to the computer. Within moments the familiar photos of the Red Shadows complex filled the screen. Like many of the photos that Flint and the others had taken over the past few days it showed little activity. But then the front door opened and a group of men were shown exiting the building.

"They stood out there for about five minutes until their guests arrived," Leatherneck explained. Firewall continued to scroll through the images until one showed a luxurious car parked out front. The next photo showed the occupants exiting the car. One in the crowd stood out.

"That's Dela Eden, the woman that met with Zarana," Firewall said.

"Based on the welcoming committee, either she's pretty high up on the food chain, or someone else in that car is," Flint said. He pointed to the screen. "These two are obviously the bodyguards. Any idea who the fourth guy is?"

"If you got a close-up, I can run a facial recognition program," Firewall said. She clicked on to the next photo and groaned once she saw that it was extremely out of focus.

Lowlight smirked at Leatherneck. "I told you I should have been in charge of the camera."

"Relax. The next shots are much clearer," Leatherneck said. He was proven correct when Firewall clicked to the next clear image.

"I don't even need to run a scan," Firewall said.

Flint agreed with her. On the screen was their number one potential suspect as head of the Red Shadows. "Wilder Vaughn," Flint said.

"Bingo," Firewall said. She typed away at the keyboard and on the second screen she pulled up Vaughn's dossier the CIA had created for him. "Just reading the highlights, he's former MI-5, left with a major chip on his shoulder apparently. Disappeared a couple of years ago, but it looks like he just resurfaced."

"Get these images to Breaker, ASAP," Flint ordered. "Hopefully this is enough of a smoking gun to give us the okay to pay them a visit. Lowlight and Leatherneck, get some shut-eye since we might be active soon. Gung-Ho and I will head back to make sure Vaughn doesn't pull another vanishing act."

"Flint, you're probably better off staying here to talk to HQ. I'll go back with Gung-Ho," Lowlight said.

Flint shook his head. "Firewall can handle it and I want you well rested."

Lowlight stood his ground. "You and I both know I don't need the sleep."

Flint begrudgingly conceded the point. Lowlight was right, he did want to focus on the mission he assumed was going to be okayed. Once Leatherneck retired to one of the cabin bedrooms, and Lowlight and Gung-Ho left for their surveillance duties, Flint rolled out the blueprints of the Red Shadows compound. He studied them for a few minutes until Firewall joined his side.

"Breaker said he'll get back to us within the hour." Firewall looked down at the paper. "I feel the need to remind you again that these plans are outdated. They are from the original complex. I'm sure once the Red Shadows moved in they remodeled and were smart enough to not make public their architectural plans."

"I know," Flint said. "But at the moment, it's all we got."

Flint spent the time before Breaker's call coming up with various mission plans. He knew most of them were going to be futile, as he was going to have to make audibles based on what they actually encountered once they broke down the back door of the compound. But he knew having a list of game plans in his head was going to help his future decision making.

As expected, Breaker called just short of the hour promised. He only stayed on the phone long enough to tell Flint that Anvil wanted to speak to him. "Flint, I just got off the phone with the Jugglers. They okayed the mission. They wanted me to stress to you that while they would love to see that S.O.B. brought back in pieces, he probably has a wealth of intelligence information in his head. So your number one priority is to bring him in alive. Law and Tripwire are in the area and should join your team within the hour. Once they arrive, you have a go."

"I understand, sir," Flint replied. "I'm not going to let you down."

Flint handed the receiver back to Firewall. It was showtime.


	7. Chapter 7

Flint and Leatherneck slowly made their way down yet another corridor. Firewall's guess about the Red Shadows remodeling had been a gross understatement. Flint had committed to memory the blueprint of the facility, but after they had entered he had quickly realized it had been for naught as the Red Shadows had apparently gutted the building and rebuilt a whole new floor plan.

Even though Flint had thought up many contingency plans, he had been forced to go into the one he liked the least, splitting the team up. Flint had ordered Tripwire, Law and Order to remain outside to protect the perimeter, and to make sure no one escaped from inside. He then told Gung-Ho and Lowlight to clear the second floor of the complex while he and Leatherneck did the same of the first.

The one positive was that they had encountered very little resistance. It appeared that the Red Shadows had a small force stationed at the location. Firewall was jamming the communications coming out of the building, so the Red Shadows wouldn't have an opportunity to call in reinforcements.

Gung-Ho's voice came through Flint's ear piece. "Flint, I think we found something."

"Same here," Leatherneck whispered as he slowly opened the door in front of him. It was a large office and staging area. A map of the world took up one whole wall, and several locations were marked on it. There were also enough computer equipment and gadgets that would make the Joe techs jealous.

They entered the room and quickly confirmed that it was empty. Flint approached the desk in the middle of the room and then froze as the large screen on the wall across from him came to life. Staring at him was the man the Joes had come to take down.

"Welcome to my humble abode, Flint and Leatherneck. Have you found anything useful yet?"

Flint put a hand up to tell Leatherneck to stand down. "We just started looking. So how about you come in here and show me where all of your plans for world domination are?"

"Please," Vaughn scoffed. "Only a fool wants to rule the world. As was proven by Cobra. Too many overblown and outrageous plans were launched by Cobra Commander, and looked what happened to him. My goals are not nearly as grandiose."

"That's commendable. I always appreciate dealing with a reasonable terrorist. But regardless, your field trip to the Pentagon put you on the G.I. Joe's list, which is why we're here."

"Ah yes, the Joes. So I imagine my field trip, as you called it, must have done wonders for your financial problems. See people like you need people like me."

"And people like me love to take down people like you," Flint responded.

Flint was then interrupted by his ear piece once again coming to life. This time it was Lowlight. "Flint, come in."

Flint kept quiet but sent a quick text message via his communicator to Lowlight telling him his current situation and to restrict all further communication to text only.

"Is that one of your buddies?" Vaughn asked. "Which one, the sniper, the Marine, the MP, or the bomb expert?"

Flint ignored the question as he read the written response that came over his communicator. Lowlight had a good lead on Vaughn, so Flint wanted to keep the Red Shadow preoccupied. "How about you tell me your best guess, since it seems that you like to show off how brilliant you are."

Vaughn grinned. "Challenge accepted. Since the first thing your team did was knock out my surveillance equipment, I can't confirm this, but I would guess the bomb expert, code name Tripwire is on the perimeter setting charges. I'm sure Law and his trusty German Shepherd are prowling the halls, but I believe it is the ones nicknamed Lowlight and Gung-Ho that apparently think they are hot on my trail."

Flint kept quiet. He knew Vaughn was on a roll, so he figured he would let the Red Shadow continue on his monologue. "You Joes and your codenames. I get the reason for it. Of course you wouldn't want the terrorists you come in contact with to know too much about your personal life. Because each and every one of you have people that you care deeply about.

"Take you, Flint, or I should I call you Dashiell? Do you want me to rattle off a few facts about your family? Or should I start with Mr. Metzger?"

Flint caught Leatherneck's eye. The marine seemed to be keeping his composure. Flint too visibly tried to maintain his cool. "Is there a point to this?"

Vaughn laughed. "I like you, Flint. I really think in a different scenario you and I could spend hours talking together. But I see that right now I have not impressed you. That's probably because I haven't gotten to where your heart really lies. Hold on one second, I want to make sure I get all of the facts right."

Vaughn reached off screen and grabbed for a piece of paper. "Here it is. Your wife is Alison, nee Hart-Burnett, who was also on the Joe team, code name Lady Jaye. I see she was discharged a couple of Novembers ago. Oh yes, the standard 'conduct unbecoming' charge. I'm going to guess it has something to do with the birth of your daughter less than five months later.

"Marissa Elizabeth Faireborn, born in the early morning hours of April 16th last year. She weighed seven pounds, ten ounces, and was nineteen inches long." Vaughn put down the paper. "Isn't it amazing the details you can find out when you have the right people and equipment?"

Flint's breathing became heavy and his heart began to pound. He continued to remind himself to remain calm and to show no emotion, but that was becoming increasingly harder with every comment.

"I see you're still not impressed. Which I can understand, as what good is old information? It doesn't matter what hospital Marissa was born in, because that is intelligence that can't be followed up on. Her birthday was a couple of days ago, wasn't it? Considering how long your team has been camped outside my compound, I'm guessing you missed it. But don't worry, according to my man in the field, she had a good time. Your wife took her to one of those baby gym places. Based on your current reaction, I'm sure you're wondering if I have a guy or two stationed outside your lovely Washington Suburb home right now."

Flint received another communication from Lowlight. It simply said, "Closing In." Flint looked at the message briefly and then turned his attention back to Vaughn who smiled and turned slightly towards Leatherneck. "Once again, Mr. Metzger I must apologize for leaving you out of our little chat. But I'm afraid I just don't have as large of a dossier about you as I do for Mr. Faireborn. But I'm going to hazard a guess you're happy about that."

Vaughn turned his attention back to Flint, "That's the negative about having a wife who has been in the public eye lately."

A loud bang sounded from Vaughn's side of the screen. He ignored the commotion and continued his monologue. "Flint, you and I, we're a lot alike. I know people look at what I've done and think I'm some kind of cold hearted monster. But I'm a family man like yourself. And I would do anything to protect them. Which is why I traveled down my current path. I know you don't want to listen to me go on and on about my ideals and morals and why I think a little bit of bloodshed and terror is good for the world in the long run. No, I think right now the only thing you can focus on is your terror of your wife and baby girl being in immediate danger. And the likelihood of me ordering a hit on them right now. Which, I'm sorry to say is true. From what I understand, your teammates are right down the hall and closing in fast on me. Before I came on the air to have this enlightening chat with you, I talked to my team in DC. Right now your wife and daughter are at the park near your house. I'm afraid then I have to inform you that if I don't make it out of here alive to call off my squad, they are going to go ahead with the orders to storm the playground."

Flint had the whole scene envisioned in his head. The idea of the Red Shadows attacking Alison and Marissa was enough to spur him into action. Breaking radio silence, he called out to Lowlight and Gung-Ho to stand down.

"Flint, no. He's bluffing," Leatherneck said.

"I can't take that chance." The seconds passed painfully slow as he waited for a response. Just as he wondered if he was too late, he got a message back.

"LL here - Radio silence? Confirm last transmission."

Flint let out a sigh of relief. He quickly typed in. "Stand down."

The next message that came in was full of typos and spelling mistakes, so Flint figured the sniper was agitated. Lowlight reiterated that he was just outside Vaughn's location with Gung-Ho behind him. "Understood. Hold for next order," Flint typed.

Vaughn turned towards a point behind him, and then spun around to face the camera again. "It looks like I bought myself some time."

Flint then attempted to reach out to Firewall, but received no response. That potentially confirmed that her jamming operation was still in place. However, Flint was afraid of another interpretation, that the Red Shadows force they had been expecting to find inside the facility, had actually attacked Firewall in the cabin.

"Trying to figure out if I'm telling the truth?" Vaughn asked with a smirk. "It's a smart call. I know it's hard right now as you're trying to justify the lives of a couple versus the lives an unknown number of future casualties." Vaughn whistled. "I'd hate to be in your shoes right now. I foresee several sleepless nights in your future."

As much as Vaughn was currently pissing him off, Flint realized he was right. He had a chance to eliminate one of the worst threats the United States and the world have experienced since the fall of Cobra. Lowlight and Gung-Ho were poised just outside Vaughn's door, waiting for the signal from Flint to go. For the good of society, it was a call Flint needed to make. All he had to do was potentially sacrifice his family. The way Leatherneck was glaring at him, he knew what side the Marine stood on.

Flint sent a message to Gung-Ho and Lowlight, "Where are you?"

The reply came back instantaneously. "Second floor, northeast corner."

Leatherneck glimpsed at the message on his communicator and then shot Flint a questioning look. With a nod, Flint conveyed the message that he wanted Leatherneck to provide backup to Gung-Ho and Lowlight. Before he left, Flint grabbed the Marine by the arm and leaned in to whisper. "You heard his threats so keep him alive. I'm going to stall him for a few more minutes and then I'll join you."

Leatherneck nodded and quickly ran out of the room.

"What is something I said?" Vaughn asked.

"I think he felt left out," Flint said as he debated his next move. Wanting to stall Vaughn was only part of the reason he was staying behind. Flint was afraid that in the time it took to get to Vaughn's location, all hell could break loose.

The next message from Gung-Ho indicated that scenario was beginning to play out. "Flint, we got company."

"Hold tight. Leatherneck is on his way."

Vaughn again looked behind him. He grinned once he faced Flint. "Sounds like the cavalry is arriving."

Flint's communicator roared to life. "We can't wait anymore. We're storming Vaughn's office."

Flint cried out for them to stop as he looked up just in time to see the two Joes enter Vaughn's office.

Vaughn smiled at Flint. He raised his hands in the air but kept his back to Gung-Ho and Lowlight. That spurred Flint into action. But as he turned to leave, Vaughn spoke to him again. "Flint, in case you're wondering I told my people to kill the baby quick. Like I said, I'm not a monster and I would never make a child suffer. Alison, though, unfortunately she's fair game. I do have a couple of depraved individuals in my employ. It's an unfortunate reality based on the business I'm in. So to be honest, I'm not quite sure what horrors your wife will experience before she too is killed."

Flint forced himself to not consider any part of the scenario just described. If he did, he would truly lose it. "Everybody keep calm," he barked out. "Remember our orders, we need him alive."

Flint watched the screen. Vaughn turned around as the sounds of gunfire broke out in the hallway. "I got him," Lowlight said to Gung-Ho. The marine ran from the room.

Lowlight trained his gun on Vaughn. "Don't move."

Vaughn turned around slowly. "You heard the boss. You can't hurt the merchandise."

The gunfire increased. Lowlight took a few steps towards Vaughn. "He said nothing about hurting you," He then knocked him out with the butt of his rifle.

Flint cursed and finally ran from the room. He raced towards the scene, but by the time he arrived the battle was over. The Joes had made short work of the small Red Shadows team that had come to Vaughn's aid. Lowlight was standing in the doorway of another office keeping tabs on both scenes, while Gung-Ho and Leatherneck stood guard over the surviving Red Shadows that were laid out in the hallway.

After making sure his men were okay, Flint pushed pass Lowlight and entered the room. He kneeled on the ground next to Vaughn. "Come on you bastard, wake up. You have to call off our team." However, it was clear the man was unconscious. Flint then turned his rage towards Lowlight. He grabbed the sniper by the collar and slammed him against the wall. "You disobeyed your orders."

Lowlight pushed back. "Yes, Flint I did. Because you were too impotent to change them. I made sure Vaughn wasn't going to get away before I jumped in to help my teammates. Unlike you who was just standing there uselessly."

Gung-Ho stepped between the two men. "Lowlight, cut it out. We heard what Vaughn threatened."

Flint's anger grew. "And yet you still knocked him out. Now he can't call off the hit on my wife and daughter. You're a selfish prick. I know you don't give a shit about family, but you may have just cost me mine."

"Come on Flint, he was yanking your chain. There's no way he could have gotten a message out with the jamming operation in place," Lowlight growled.

"How do you know that? How do you know he didn't also have a team that had taken out Firewall?"

Lowlight didn't have an answer, so Flint continued. "If you don't mind, I'm going to confirm that fact for myself. I'm going outside. Leatherneck, with me. The rest of you secure Vaughn and the other prisoners."

After they were back on the lower floor, Leatherneck said to him, "Flint, believe me I know how you feel. If anyone threatened my girls, I would have reacted the same way. But Lowlight did the right thing."

Flint didn't respond. They reached the outer door that they had designated as their main egress. Flint gave the code knock and within moments, Tripwire opened the door. "What happened? Is everyone okay? We haven't heard from anybody except Firewall since you went in."

"We're fine," Flint answered tersely as he dialed Firewall who answered immediately. "We got Vaughn. But, he threatened my family, so I want you on the horn to the Pentagon. Tell Hawk or whoever answers that I want a team over at my house to get them to safety. They may not be home. It's possible they are at one of the local playgrounds."

"Will do. If it makes you feel any better, my jamming system was so kick-ass that no one sent any kind of message out of the building. Unfortunately, it worked too well which you might have noticed if you tried to contact me."

That news did make Flint feel somewhat better. "You can turn it off now. Once you're done, hang tight. There's a lot you're going to want to look at here, but I want to make sure it's secure first."

Flint turned his attention to Tripwire and Law who had joined them. "Has anyone left this building since we've gone in?"

"Negative," Law said. Flint could have sworn that Order nodded his head in agreement.

"Okay. We have prisoners. They're on the second floor." Flint pointed to the corner of the building. "Law, help the others secure the area. Tripwire, disable your traps, as the Joes are going to want to go over this place with a fine tooth comb. I'm going to update Anvil."

It must have taken Firewall a few minutes to shut down her system because it took Flint several tries before he was able contact Anvil. He gave the General a brief recap of the mission, including the threat made against Alison and Marissa.

"Flint, I need you to keep your head in the game. I'll confirm with Hawk that they are safe. Once we do, though, I need you to see this mission through to the end. I'm going to send Lift-Ticket and Wild Bill to pick up your prisoners."

As much as Flint wanted to disregard the order until he confirmed that Alison and Marissa were okay, he knew he couldn't. He had a job to do. Right now the safety of his family were in the hands of others, and he had to trust in their competency. "Sir, I'd like to at least call Alison."

"The mission is over and so is the need for top secrecy. Once things on your end are secure and stable, you are all free to reach out to your families."

Flint hung up. Unfortunately the phone call to Alison needed to wait. He turned to Leatherneck. "Let's go back upstairs and get this cleaned up as quickly as possible."

On the way up, something was nagging at Flint. It wasn't until he saw the prisoners lined up against the hallway wall that he figured out what it was. "Has anyone seen Dela Eden?"

All of the Joes replied in the negative. "Damn it. There must be another way out of here. Search this place. I'll stay here with the prisoners."

Once the Joes left, Flint pulled out his phone to call Alison to warn her. But then Vaughn began to stir. Flint marched over to the man. "Call off any squad going after my family, or I'm going to make the rest of what's going to be your short life very unpleasant."

Vaughn smiled at him. "You didn't believe all of that nonsense I spouted off, did you? Come on, Flint, I expected you to be smarter than that. That was just my insurance policy, to make sure I made it out of here alive."

"Do you want to beef up your policy? How about you tell me where Dela Eden disappeared to, and how many of your other associates she took with her?"

"Who?" Vaughn asked.

"Don't play dumb with me. We watched you two arrive together. And now she is nowhere to be found."

Vaughn shrugged. "Sounds like she is quite the magician."

Before Flint could respond, he received a report from Law. "Order picked up her trail immediately and he led Leatherneck and I to the roof. There are flight pods parked up here, and it's pretty clear one is missing."

Flint let out a series of curses. "Okay, everybody back here."

While waiting for the team to return Flint updated Anvil about Dela Eden's escape. Once he was done Anvil let him know that Hawk had made contact with Alison and that they were fine. "Hawk is on his way there to pick them up and bring them back to his house."

"Thank you sir, I appreciate that. It's a load off of my mind."

"I bet it is."

Flint hung up as the four Joes entered the room. "It appears we suffered a setback, but let's keep focus on the game plan. Gung-Ho, Leatherneck, and Law escort our guests outside to wait for their transport. Lowlight, come with me to get Firewall. I want to get her started on the computers in here."

Before Flint left, Vaughn had a few closing thoughts. "Dashiell, I'm sure you're going to be up many nights in the future thinking about what I threatened. And wondering how I was able to find out so much about you."

Flint knew Vaughn was probably right, but he wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of a response.

Law helped him out. "Don't waste your time with this lunatic. I got him."

On the way back to the cabin, Flint told Lowlight to stop for a minute. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier. You did good today, especially since I was no help to you."

Lowlight stared him down. "Thank you. I may have had a terrible upbringing thanks to an asshole of a father, but I do know how important family is. So I hope Alison and the baby are okay."

"Me too," Flint said. He decided it was finally time to call his wife.


	8. Chapter 8

"Marie, if you want to get to your sister's house before dark, we need to leave now," Nate said as he joined Marie and Alison in the kitchen.

Marie sighed. "Are you sure we shouldn't postpone a couple of days in case Dashiell comes home?"

It was a perfectly reasonable question. And it was unfair to Flint's parents that they had come for a visit without seeing him. But they had been there for nearly a week, and Alison wanted them out of her house. Especially as her nerves were shot as the days had gone on without an update from Flint or his team. She strongly suspected that she had been purposely kept out of the loop, which had increased her frustration. "Since I haven't gotten news that the mission is over, I don't think he'll be back any time soon. It could be another couple of days, or even weeks."

Marie looked defeated, but she didn't argue. "Let me get my bag."

"Don't be silly, I got it," Nate replied. "Go say goodbye to Marissa."

Alison felt a tinge of guilt as she watched the scene. Marissa had perfected the art of waving while saying 'bye-bye' and she had also learned the word for Grandma. Her guilt increased when Marissa burst into tears once the two left.

Alison calmed Marissa down, and relished the quiet for a couple of minutes. She originally had looked forward to a Sunday with no plans, but she now dreaded the idea. Luckily it was forecasted to be a warm day. "Marissa, how about we take another trip to see the pretty flowers?"

They had a nice day walking the Washington Mall, and taking in the sights of the monuments and cherry blossoms. Shortly after returning home, Alison's phone rang. She saw that it was Hawk. A feeling of dread came over her as she immediately feared the worst.

"Hawk?" she asked as she answered the phone. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. Flint is fine. I just talked to him. The mission is over."

"it is? Did we get the Red Shadows?"

"I'll give you a debrief, but first I need to get you and Marissa to safety. Are you home?"

"Yes I just walked in."

"Okay. Stay where you are, and don't answer the door for anybody but me. Pack a bag. I will be there in about ten minutes."

Before Alison could ask another question, Hawk hung up. Despite her confusion, she did what she was told. Less than fifteen minutes later, her doorbell rang. After checking that it was Hawk, she opened the door.

"Hawk, what the hell is going on?"

"Out of an abundance of caution, I think it's best if you stay with me the next couple of days."

The amount of information, or actually lack of, conveyed in the short time had Alison reeling. "What? Why?"

Hawk ignored the question. Instead he asked one of his own, "Where are Flint's parents?"

"They left earlier this morning to visit Marie's sister in Maine."

Hawk processed the news. "Okay. Give me the address. I'll send someone over to check it out."

Alison wanted to again question Hawk about the reason for his concern, but she knew it would probably be futile. Instead she focused on finishing her packing for herself and Marissa. As she put the last items in a suitcase, her phone rang. She was relieved to see it was Flint.

"Dash?" she excitedly asked.

"It's me, babe."

The stress of the day instantly evaporated. "It's so good to hear your voice."

"Yours too. I don't have a lot of time, but I wanted to tell you that Hawk is on his way. We think it's a good idea if you stay with him until I get back."

"He's here now, and I'm just about packed up. But why, what's going on?"

"Don't worry, this is being done out of an abundance of caution."

Alison frowned. It was all very suspicious behavior, and she didn't like that she was being kept in the dark. "That's exactly what Hawk said. He too wasn't very forthcoming with the details."

"I know it's frustrating. And I'm sorry about that. But let me ask you, what did you do this morning?"

"Marissa and I took your parents to that breakfast place you liked so much."

"I forgot my parents were with you. I'm sure Hawk won't mind having them stay with him too."

"They already left to go to your aunt's place in Maine. Hawk said he would send somebody out to check on him."

"Okay, great. I'll try and give them a quick call too." Flint went quiet for a moment. "Did you go to the playground down the street today? Or to a gymnastics place for Marissa's birthday?"

Alison was getting annoyed by the cryptic questions. "No, to both questions. After your parents left, we went to the National Mall. As for Marissa's birthday the daycare had a little party for her."

Alison heard Flint let out a sigh of relief. "Okay, thanks. I really don't think there is anything to worry about, but go with Hawk. I just want to make sure you and Marissa are safe. I have to go, but hopefully I'll be home in a few days. Give baby girl a kiss for me."

Alison reluctantly ended the conversation. "I will. I love you, Dash."

"I love you too," Flint replied and he ended the call.

Alison took a few moments to give thanks that her husband was safe, and that once again the Scottish woman's prophecy had proven false. She then finished packing, grabbed Marissa and walked to her car but Hawk stopped her. "No, we should take mine."

It was then that she noticed the military trio standing in front of her neighbor's house. Based on the gear they carried she guessed they were part of the bomb squad. "They're going to search your home and car, but it's all out of…"

"I know, an abundance of caution," Alison muttered.

One of the men told Hawk that the car was clear. Hawk nodded. "Okay, but I still want you two with me in mine. I'll have someone bring it to you at my house later this weekend."

Assuming she had no say in the matter, Alison moved Marissa's car seat into Hawk's car. Once they drove away, Alison said, "Okay, Hawk, no more games. What's going on?"

"Flint's team raided the Red Shadows complex earlier today. They took several operatives into custody, including Vaughn. He made some threats against the Joes' families, which is why the two of you will be my guest for the next couple of days."

"Where's Vaughn now?" Alison asked.

Hawk grimaced. "Only a select few know that."

Alison nodded. While she was disappointed that she wasn't on the need-to-know list, she could understand the strict security. Hawk continued, "The Joes are going over the place with a fine-tooth comb."

"Any chance I can get out there?"

Once again, the look on Hawk's face gave her the answer. "We should be getting the data here in the next twenty-four hours, which I'm sure you'll have access to."

Unfortunately, that was not the case. Alison spent an extremely frustrating three days being denied access to the Red Shadows information. She was nearly at her breaking point, when she finally got notice that Flint was returning.

Hawk also allowed her to return home. She didn't let the escort he assigned stop her from her plan of going to the grocery store to restock in order to have the items needed for a nice welcome home dinner for her husband.

Once she was finished she drove to Andrew's Air Force base. She was early, so she waited in the shade of the hangar. It was a warm afternoon for the end of April, and she checked to make sure Marissa wasn't too uncomfortable in her stroller. In typical military fashion, Flint's plane had been delayed, but Marissa seemed to be handling the wait better than she was. It helped that Alison had brought along a couple of her new toys that she had received for her birthday.

Finally, Alison caught site of the Tomahawk as it began to make its approach. Her nerves increased, as she worried about what frame of mind Flint would be in. The heavily redacted after-mission report she had been granted access to only gave her a vague idea of what had occurred on the mission. The couple of brief phone calls she had had with him over the three previous days had reassured her that he was fine physically. But she was concerned more about his mental and emotional state, as she had picked up a sense that something was bothering him. The mission had gone better than all had hoped, but she knew it must have still been hard on him.

Alison reached down and unbuckled Marissa from the stroller. "Hey, baby girl. Daddy's home."

Marissa looked up with a grin and threw the toy she had been holding on to the ground. "Dada?"

Alison too grinned. She had purposely waited to tell Marissa that Flint was coming home until that moment. She knew that once Marissa heard her father's name, she would be full of excitement and Alison didn't want her tortured by the wait.

She picked up the toddler and pointed towards the Tomahawk. "Yep, that's daddy's plane. He'll be coming off of it any minute now."

"Dada plane!" Marissa said as she too pointed.

Alison brushed Marissa's curls out of her eyes and kissed one of her chubby cheeks. "He's going to be so happy to see you."

Marissa continued to chant his name, as Alison waited for the Tomahawk to shut down. Once it did she turned towards the guard standing closest to her. "Can I walk towards it?"

He nodded. Alison was within a few feet on the plane when Flint finally emerged. Marissa shrieked his name. He looked tired and emotionally drained until he heard his daughter. He grinned as he walked towards them. Marissa fought her to get into his arms as quickly as possible. Once he was close enough he grabbed her and she wrapped her small arms around his neck, as he kissed the top of the toddler's forehead.

Alison had to wipe away at the tears that formed in her eyes. She gave the two of them a moment alone, before she approached and laid her hand against his face. "Welcome home. Are you okay?"

"I'm better now." He shifted Marissa to free up an arm so he could pull Alison close to him.

They stayed like that for a few moments until Alison pulled away. "Hawk gave us the rest of the day off. Do you want to go home?"

"Yes, I do," Flint said enthusiastically.

He was quiet during the ride home, and fell asleep. Despite Marissa's excitement, she too fell asleep. Alison glanced over and grinned as she realized the two were wearing identical expressions.

Once they were home, Flint went to take a shower, while she started the grill.

"That's new," Flint said as he came out onto the small deck off of their living room.

"Actually, it's a hand me down. Stalker bought a new grill so he gave us this one. It still works fine. Your dad used it a couple of times while he was here. Do you want to take over while I work on the vegetables inside?"

"Sure," he said. He walked over to take the spatula from her hand.

Alison rubbed his arm. "Do you want something to drink?"

"I'll wait until dinner, but thanks."

Once back in the house she saw that Marissa was starting to fuss. She had pulled herself up against the wall of the playpen and was asking to eat. "Okay, I know you're hungry," Alison said. She picked her up, and put her in her high chair. She then put a mixture of cheerios and peas on the tray. It was a way to keep Marissa entertained until she could give her actual dinner.

Alison watched her with a smile as she would say either 'pea' or 'chee' before she put the appropriate food in her mouth. Alison looked out the sliding door to the backyard. She was going to call Flint in to see Marissa's antics, but she saw that he seemed to still be lost in his thoughts. She sighed, and then went back into the kitchen.

A half hour later they sat down to eat. They made small talk, mostly about Marissa. Once it was done, Alison got up to pour them both a second glass of wine. Flint pointed his glass towards hers. "Does this mean our goodbye sex wasn't successful?"

"Unfortunately, it wasn't. But I'm not surprised. It would have been nice, but I wasn't expecting it to happen during the first month."

Flint nodded. "I guess that means we'll have to try again," he said with a smile.

Alison leaned over to kiss him. "How about I give baby girl a bath and put her to bed, and then we can work on that."

"Actually, let me do the bath and bedtime routine. I missed that while I was gone."

"Okay. I'll clean up in here. Just call me if you need a hand."

Flint carried Marissa into the bathroom, and Alison smiled as she soon heard the sounds of water splashing and the two of them laughing. She put on some music, and quickly washed the dishes. It was nice having a reprieve from the evening baby duties.

Once bath time was over, Flint took Marissa to her bedroom. Alison still didn't want to disturb them, but she did want to peek in. Using the excuse of needing to go into their own bedroom to change, she quietly walked passed Marissa's room and looked in. Flint was sitting in the rocking chair, with Marissa on his lap. He had pulled a couple of books from her bookshelf and asked her which one she wanted. Alison guessed what her choice was going to be, as Marissa's new favorite book of the last few weeks was the Velveteen Rabbit. Sure enough, Marissa said "bunny" and then settled back against her father's chest.

Alison noticed that Marissa's hair was a mess, and she figured that Flint hadn't bothered to comb it out. Despite the fact that she knew it was going to make the morning routine that much harder, she did not want to disturb the scene. Flint hadn't noticed that she was watching them, and she decided to leave them alone.

She went into their bedroom to change into a nightgown, and then went back into the living room to wait for Flint to finish. He joined her a few minutes later. He grabbed his glass of wine. "Is it just me or is she saying a lot more words than when I last saw her?"

"She is. At her one year check-up, her pediatrician said that her verbal skills are very high. But based on her parentage, does that surprise you?"

"No, it doesn't. It really is amazing how genes work." Flint refilled his glass before he sat down on the couch with a heavy sigh.

Alison ran her fingers through his hair. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not now," Flint said as he leaned in to kiss her. It quickly escalated to foreplay and then to sex. Once it was over, she settled against his chest.

They sat in silence for a while. "I almost fucked up the mission," Flint finally said.

She pulled away so that she could turn and face him. "How?"

Flint sighed and then took a drink of his wine before he recapped the mission, and how Vaughn's knowledge of his family dangerously distracted him. "If it wasn't for Lowlight, I probably would have let Vaughn get away."

She had gone into the conversation wanting to help Flint through his issues, but she was now more disturbed by the information Vaughn apparently had about her and her family. "What kind of things did he know about us?"

"My name, your maiden name, our Joe connection, and the details behind your discharge."

"That's basically all matters of public record now."

"I know, but what really disturbed me was that he had all of the details of Marissa's birth down to her exact birth weight. So when he made it seem like he had a team following you, I panicked."

"This explains the cryptic questions you asked me." As Alison processed the news she started to get angry. Not only at Vaughn, but at Flint who had basically treated her like a damsel in distress. She abruptly pulled out of his grasp. "Dash, I know you have the habit of playing the Alpha male, but I'm still not a delicate flower that needed to be protected. You should have been more honest with me about what was going on instead of sending Hawk over to babysit the two of us."

"Alison, please don't read too much into my actions. If it makes you feel better, we put protective details on all family members of my Joe team. I really don't want to fight about this."

She sighed. "I don't either." She decided to be honest about what was really bothering. "I'm just so frustrated by this whole situation. I haven't been cleared access to any of the Red Shadows information that your team found. So the idea that you too were withholding details bothered me."

"Why were you denied access to my mission?"

"I don't know. Maybe it was because you were heading up the mission. Or they still don't completely trust me. I'll put that on my to-do list right after I look into how Vaughn got all of our personal information."

Alison kept to her word and it didn't take long the following morning to find what was apparently Vaughn's source. "Flint, look at this."

He walked over and leaned over the back of her chair to read what was on the computer screen. "Hector Ramirez. Damn it."

Alison tapped the screen. "Can you believe he dedicated a whole half-hour special to the apparent sordid details of my trial? I had no idea this aired earlier this month."

"I guess that's a sign that no one watches this drivel."

"I'm going to guess at least Vaughn did, and possibly a few Jugglers." Alison rose from her desk and got permission from Hawk to watch the news program. He not only granted the request but took a seat, along with Stalker, to watch it as well.

It was an uncomfortable, and at times excruciating, twenty-two minutes of television. Hector Ramirez introduced the segment with footage from Alison's previous appearances on Twenty Questions. As the video faded, it segued into Hector Ramirez standing alone in the studio. "Alison 'Lady Jaye' Hart-Burnett was at the top of her career. She struck fear in the hearts of Cobra operatives, while being the envy of little girls across the world. And then she threw it all away."

Alison had to refrain from putting her fist through her monitor as Hector continued. "A few months after Lady Jaye helped G.I. Joe hand Cobra a final decisive loss in the Himalayan Mountains, she was forced out of the Army. It came to light that she had been engaged in a secret affair with one of her commanding officers and had conceived a child out of wedlock."

"Typical male chauvinism," Alison muttered. She glanced at Flint. "I guess you were just an innocent bystander that got caught in my evil clutches." Flint opened his mouth to respond, but wisely thought better of it.

"Calling in a favor from the former head of the G.I. Joe team, Alison was able to get a coveted job in the Pentagon, working in the intelligence sector. Leaving behind her new husband, she relocated to Alexandria. A few months later, her daughter was born." Alison and Flint gasped as Marissa's birth photo as well as her hospital information card flashed on the screen. Alison paused the image and looked at Flint.

"I'm guessing this is how Vaughn got the details of her birth," Flint said with a frown.

Alison hit play and Hector continued. "All seemed right once again in her world. That is until the Red Shadows attacked the Pentagon."

Several videos compiled from news footage of the attack played on the screen. Hector continued his voiceover. "Alison received a minor injury during the attack and took a few weeks off to recoup. That is probably why she avoided initial suspicion once the Jugglers began to investigate whether the Red Shadows had an inside source. But as the investigation continued, her name rose to the top of the list of potential Red Shadows co-conspirators."

Alison knew that the best thing to do at that point, was to turn off the video. However, she had a morbid fascination to watch it to the end. "A trial was held in January, and a fair amount of damning evidence was presented." Once again the screen cut away to news clips, this time showing snippets of Alison's questioning. She wasn't surprised to see that Twenty Questions showed only the most controversial moments.

"After a short deliberation, the Jugglers found that there was no evidence of wrongdoing. But I'm sorry, I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't question that ruling."

Alison tuned out Hector Ramirez's ramblings as he tried to make his case against her. Instead she focused on the breach of her privacy. She tried to gauge if the details revealed compromised their safety. She was extremely irate that Marissa's birth information had been made public, but it could have been worse. She and Flint had made sure that their home address was unlisted. While Hector Ramirez had referenced the town they lived in, he didn't make any other specific reference, so Alison assumed that was information not on the public domain.

The video mercifully ended. Flint, Stalker and Hawk tried to appease her by telling her that Hector Ramirez and Twenty Questions was nothing but a hack job news program that no sane individual would believe.

"I don't know about that," Alison replied. "It seems like quite the coincidence that my duties were reduced at about the same time this aired."

Hawk stood up. "I need to make some phone calls. But Alison don't let this get to you. This was a great disservice against you, but focus on what's important. You helped Flint and the Joes deliver a crucial blow to the Red Shadows. We have their leader off of the streets and in our custody."

Stalker patted her on the shoulder and then returned to his desk. Flint turned to her. "I'm sorry Hector Ramirez did this, but Hawk's right. We need to focus on what's important. I think we made the world a little bit safer for our children."

Alison flashed a smile at her husband that she didn't feel. She didn't feel nearly as optimistic as he did.


	9. Chapter 9

Over the next few months, with the diminished Red Shadows threat, Flint and Alison were able to enjoy life as a nearly normal family. They spent the summer doing activities that was typical for parents of a toddler. They joined a gym with a pool and signed Marissa up for swim lessons. They spent time at local parks, and took weekend trips to the beach.

The only negative in their personal life, was despite actively trying to conceive a second child their efforts were futile. Alison brought up her concerns at her yearly OB-GYN appointment in early October and her physician allayed her fears. "Six months in not an unusually long time."

"It seems like it though," Alison admitted. "And since our daughter was unplanned, I assumed the second time around would be just as easy."

"Conception is a complicated process. Sometimes it happens quickly, sometimes it doesn't. Even with some couples that have easily conceived in the past have trouble later on. Give it at least a year, and if it still hasn't happened we can run some tests."

"Everything okay?" Flint asked her when she returned home. Alison summed up the doctor's thoughts and then said, "Maybe we just need to take a relaxing vacation in an exotic location."

"Since you brought it up, I was going to suggest a getaway."

That peaked Alison's interest. "When and where?"

"Joe HQ during the last weekend in October."

Alison laughed. "That's not exactly an exotic locale."

"I know, but Anvil is bringing back the family weekend after they canceled it last year because of the Pentagon attack. Duke reached out to many of the former Joes, and he's hoping we could have a reunion of sorts."

Alison nodded as she contemplated the idea. "It would be nice to see some of the old faces."

"And we can take a couple of extra days, maybe recreate our honeymoon."

Alison looked over at Marissa who was engrossed in one of her favorite PBS shows. She wasn't sure how romantic it would be while having a toddler in tow, but Flint's idea was appealing. "Okay, let's do it."

* * *

Alison took a bite of her burger as she watched Flint and Marissa play in the pool. She had had her doubts when Flint suggested the trip to Joe Headquarters. But she had to admit that it had been a good idea. The weather was beautiful, and the Joes had gone all out for family weekend. Roadblock was manning the grill, a variety of tunes were playing from the stereo and there were several activities planned. Marissa was too young to participate in most of the events, but Alison had packed her costume and she hoped that the toddler would be willing to attempt the Joe version of trick-or-treating later that evening.

Alison settled back in her chair and she looked out at the Joes gathered around the pool. While her life had changed dramatically in the nearly two years since she had left the Joes, it seemed that everything was status quo at Joe HQ. Sure, the team was smaller, as several members had either transferred or retired, and only a few of them were replaced with fresh blood, but there were enough familiar faces around to make it seem like a homecoming.

Alison smiled as Marissa let out another squeal, after Flint gently tossed her into the air. Scarlett walked over, handed her a bottle of water and took the open seat next to her. "It looks like Flint is in Super Dad mode again. Is he really like this all the time?"

"Honestly, he is. Based on how much he wanted Marissa before she was born, I knew he was going to be a good dad, but I wasn't expecting him to be this great at it."

"So it sounds like all is well in the Faireborn household."

"For the most part, it is," Alison said.

"The most part?" Scarlett questioned. "Something wrong?"

Alison looked around the pool area and to the Joes and their families milling about. She didn't want to get into the details of her fertility problems, so she decided to open up to her friend about her professional concerns. "No, nothing is technically wrong. Work has been really quiet, which I admit after a couple of chaotic years has been kind of nice."

"But?" Scarlett asked.

Alison sighed. "I'm bored. And I'm frustrated because I feel like I'm being given busy work while others are doing the important work."

"Do you think it's still due to fallout from the Twenty Questions exposé?"

"Hawk talked to the Jugglers and they all swear it has nothing to do with it. They said it's just the standard ebb and flow of the intelligence business."

Scarlett stared at her a moment. "And you obviously don't believe that. So now what? Are you going to go after Ramirez?"

Alison settled her head back against the lounge chair. "I briefly considered it after I watched the video. But then I realized I'd be wasting my time since it's not going to change the Jugglers' minds. Besides, Ramirez only reported the truth."

Scarlett laughed. "Okay, not I'm starting to worry about your mental health if you think his drivel is anywhere near the truth."

"Shana, I appreciate the vote of confidence and the unwavering loyalty, but go back and watch it again. Everything he reported on, and the videos he showed are facts."

"Fine, but his play by plays and editorials are definitely slanted the way he wants. And unfortunately that's what most people listen to." Both women went quiet for a few moments until Scarlett continued. "To go back to my original question, what are you going to do?"

"My commitment to Hawk's team is up in January. I haven't exactly been flush with other job offers so I think I'm going to wait and see what happens." Alison stared at Scarlett, silently pleading with her to stop the interrogation. She didn't want to hear a pep talk from Scarlett, or get advice, and she didn't want to be forced to admit she wasn't exactly on the career path she had envisioned for herself. However, she did break down on one topic. "To be honest, I thought by this point I'd be pregnant again and having two kids under the age of three would be enough of a distraction from my job woes."

"Oh honey," Scarlett said as she rubbed her leg. "Sometimes that takes time."

"I know, that's what my doctor says which is why I'm trying not to worry about it too much." Alison flashed a smiled. "I won't be surprised if by this time next year we're back here, and I'm holding a newborn Dash Jr. in my arms."

Scarlett leaned over to give her a hug before her communicator binged. She pulled away and read the message with a sigh. "Looks like duty calls."

"Something wrong?" Alison asked.

"No, I don't think so. Duke says he needs my help with something."

If it were the old days, Alison would have teased Scarlett about the kind of help Duke needed. But Scarlett had been extremely tight lipped over her current relationship, if there was one, with Duke and Alison didn't want to upset her.

After Scarlett left, Flint carried Marissa out of the pool and over to their chairs. Marissa was resting her head against her father's shoulder. "I think this one is ready for a nap. Do you want to head back to the hotel for a couple of hours?"

The idea of spending the afternoon in a stuffy hotel room on a beautiful day was really unappealing. Alison stood and pulled one of the chairs into the shade. "We can put her down over here. I'd like to hang out here a little while longer."

Flint laid Marissa down, and she was asleep within moments.

Alison decided to take advantage of nap time. "I haven't had a chance to talk to Cover Girl yet. I heard she's in the hangar, do you mind staying with Marissa?"

"Not at all."

Alison took the walk over and found Cover Girl inspecting one of the Conquests. "Don't tell me you've moved on from the motor pool?"

Cover Girl smiled. "That would never happen. I'm just helping Ace out today."

With a smirk, Alison said, "Lost your shirt in one of his card games?"

"Guilty as charged. And to make sure I didn't have to literally lose my shirt last night, I agreed to perform the pre-flight inspections for the air show."

"Court, by any chance, is my old Skystriker still around?" She recited the tail number from memory.

Cover Girl gestured for Alison to follow her. "We might. We held on to a few of the old models as a back-up. We keep them in good shape in case we do need to use them. I think she's over there."

Once she found it in the line of Skystrikers stored in the back, Alison walked over to it. She ran her hand over the surface as she was bombarded with memories. She was startled by Ace's voice. "Do you still remember how to fly?"

"I believe so. Isn't it like riding a bike?" Alison joked.

"Not exactly," Ace said. He pulled over a small ladder. "Climb aboard. If you feel comfortable enough, you can join us in the opening act."

Alison felt a wave of excitement. She climbed into the pilot's seat. Taking one look at the controls, she knew she could do it. She climbed back down. "I'm a go. Let me just make sure Flint's still okay with Marissa."

Flint gave her his blessing, and while she waited for the plane to be towed to the air strip she went through the pre-flight check-list with Ace.

"I'm guessing medically, you're fine," Ace said as he looked at the clipboard, "but I just want to make sure you don't have any more Faireborns percolating in you."

Alison let out a nervous laugh. "No. Not right now." _Hopefully, soon though_ , she thought.

Ace signed off on the sheet on his clipboard. He then spent a few minutes outlining the maneuvers they were to make for the airshow. Once he was through Alison nodded. "Pretty basic stuff."

"I know. Anvil doesn't want anything too wild and crazy. Which means I'd be remiss if I didn't warn you to not to pull any stunts out there."

Alison gave Ace a 'Who Me?" look and climbed aboard her Skystriker. She began her pre-flight routine and was pleasantly surprised to see that she still remembered the procedure. Once all the instruments checked out, she was given the green light for take-off.

A few minutes later she was in the air, and she took her place in the formation.

"Good afternoon, lady and gentlemen. As you can see, it is a beautiful day for a flight. Unfortunately, there is no beverage or food service on this flight, so I hope you all ate well at the barbecue. And before I continue, I just want to welcome our special guest, Alison, who has temporarily rejoined us from motherhood and DC desk duty."

Alison smiled. She had missed Ace's briefings. He then turned all business as he began to guide them through the routine. At first the gentle rolls and twists and turns was exciting for Alison as she hadn't performed any kind of jet maneuvers in two years. But soon it became repetitive and borderline boring.

Alison thought back to the time she had to cut her African Safari trip short to return to HQ for a mission. It was shortly after she had hooked up with Flint for the first time, and she wanted to give him a little extra attention, in the form of a buzz by. She thought he enjoyed it, but Duke, who had been standing with him, had not been amused.

She figured Flint would be watching the show near the airstrip, so she decided to relive the past. When the show came to an end, instead of landing behind the other Skystrikers, she pulled back buzzing over the heads of the crowd standing there. She caught a quick glimpse of Flint, and gasped when she saw that he was holding Marissa. She felt bad as she realized she probably scared the hell out of her.

Flint called her moments later, and she assumed it was to chew her out for the stunt. But once again she was surprised. "Having a good time up there?"

"I am, but Dash, I'm so sorry. I didn't think you would have Marissa with you. Did I scare her?"

Flint laughed. "Scared her? Are you kidding, she loved it. You should have heard the squeals she was making.

Alison could hear her talking in the background. "What is she saying?"

"She keeps repeating, 'Again'".

Alison grinned. "Well, since she's asking for it, tell her to look for Mommy's plane again."

Alison repeated the move, but she made sure to keep the plane at a safer distance away. She then reluctantly brought the plane for a landing. She jumped out of the cockpit, and was met by Duke. "It's good to see you're still a pain in the ass."

Alison ignored him as she watched Flint approach with Marissa. She held out her arms to take her. Giving her a kiss on the top of her head she said, "So Mommy's little girl loves airplanes!"

Alison's joy was short lived as she saw Anvil march towards her. Based on the look on his face, he wasn't nearly as impressed by her stunt as Marissa was. She braced herself for the reprimand, but he passed by her with only a fleeting look of disapproval. Alison turned and noticed that a Tomahawk was coming in for a landing.

They waited for it to land and then joined the group standing near the side of the tarmac. Scarlett got Alison and Flint caught up. "Beachhead and his team is returning from the bunker referenced in the Red Shadows' files. Based on his initial report, it was another bust."

"It was more than a bust," Beachhead said as he walked over. "It looked like the place burned down months ago. We grabbed whatever computer equipment we could salvage, but since they had been exposed to the elements we're thinking it's a lost cause."

Anvil frowned. "Well, unfortunately it was what we expected. At least you're back in time to participate in the family weekend. Roadblock is still grilling some burgers if you want to get something to eat."

Most of the team took Anvil up on his offer, but Beachhead passed. Alison handed Marissa back to Flint as she told him she wanted to talk to Beachhead for a few minutes. She wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to acquire some intelligence on her own, since the Jugglers were making it difficult for her to do her job back in DC.

"So another dead end?" Alison asked as she joined Beachhead's side.

"You were standing there when I made my report."

"How many more Red Shadows sites do you need to check out?"

"Officially, there were two more, but those were a longshot going into this mission. I wouldn't be surprised if they scrap those missions."

Alison nodded. "Any progress made on the other intelligence the Red Shadows left behind at their HQ?"

Beachhead stopped walking and turned to face her. "I admire your work ethic and curiosity on your mini-vacation here. But how about you go pick the brains of the tech geeks that will have better answers for you?"

Beachhead walked back towards his room. Alison knew he was right. The computer lab was the best source of information. And since she hadn't seen Mainframe's ex-wife, Ronnie, or their kids, she assumed Mainframe would still be working.

It turned out she was half right. Although he was in the computer lab, he wasn't exactly hard at work. He was in the middle of taunting Dial-Tone over yet another video game when Alison walked in. "I'm sorry, I can see you both are extremely busy, so I'll come back once you have a moment to talk."

Dial-Tone turned his head which caused Mainframe to start laughing. "Rookie mistake, I just took you down!"

"That wasn't fair. What about the agreement that a work emergency took precedence?"

"Sorry, pal, but this is no emergency," Mainframe replied. He tossed the controller down and leaned back in the chair. "And a bet's a bet. So you go scurry over to the barbecue and bring me back a full plate."

Dial-Tone grumbled some more but he did leave. Once he was gone, Mainframe turned to her. "Now, Miss Alison, what can I do for you?"

"Beachhead's team is back but they said the site they went to investigate had long been destroyed. But besides the locations of their alternate operating sites that they have scrapped, what other information have you been able to gather from the raid on their HQ?"

"I'll show you," Mainframe said. After a few mouse clicks and key strokes, a list of files appeared on the screen. Alison read through their descriptions and then picked the one that was labeled potential targets. She gasped once the information appeared. "These are high profile targets."

"I know. And that is only the beginning of page one. Keep scrolling."

As Alison continued down the list, she quickly realized that it wasn't a specific list, but one that listed all of the potential targets in the United States. However she did notice something odd. "What are the dates next to some of the sites?"

"Our best guess of correlating a where to a when. A lot of these places were collated from a fascinating read called Vaughn's Manifesto. At first we thought he was just boring us with history lessons, but when Firewall investigated further she noticed that his dates were off. We didn't think he would make such blatant mistakes so we guessed this was his way of telegraphing his next move."

Alison thought that would have been a huge breakthrough for the Joe's intelligence department, but the problem was there was too much information to be useful. The Joes probably could jump from one historic site to the other, on the dates Vaughn called out, but Alison suspected that was exactly what Vaughn wanted them to do. Which meant any next target was probably not on the list.

"Did you," Alison began to ask but Mainframe read her mind as he finished her question.

"Make a list of all the sites not referenced? Yep, and that is this spreadsheet here." Again, a couple of mouse clicks later Alison was staring at another long list of American targets. Alison let out a sigh.

"I know," Mainframe said. "Just when you think you have a breakthrough you realize you've only made more work for everybody."

"I guess it's better than no information," Alison muttered. Knowing she couldn't get any more useful information, she decided to join her husband and daughter in the rest of the weekend festivities.


	10. Chapter 10

"Alison Faireborn?" a well-dressed man asked as he approached Alison's desk a few days after they had returned from Arizona.

"Yes?" Alison replied with hesitation.

"I'm Stuart Edwards, covert operative for the CIA. "I was wondering if I could have a few moments of your time."

Before Alison could reply, Flint jumped to her side. "Is there a problem here?"

"No, not at all. And you are?" Stuart replied.

"This is Warrant Officer Dashiell Faireborn," Alison said, as she glared at Flint for his intrusion.

"Her husband," Flint added.

"Yes, of course. I'm sorry for the secrecy, it comes naturally with my job. I just have a business proposition to discuss with Alison. If you're free, maybe we can go to lunch?"

Alison was intrigued. "I am available. The cafeteria or somewhere off-site?"

"If you have the time, I'd rather it be one of the local places. If your cafeteria is anything like ours, it will be hard to find a quiet table to talk."

"Unfortunately, I have an appointment in a half hour so I need to pass," Flint added.

Alison had to refrain from pointing out that he was never invited. "Let me just get the okay from Hawk to take a long lunch."

Hawk did and fifteen minutes later the two were seated in a diner a few blocks away from the Pentagon. Stuart waited until they both ordered to start the conversation. "Have you ever given thought to working at the CIA?"

"I admit I have," Alison answered. "But an opportunity never presented itself."

"Well, that's why I'm here. We've kept an eye on you and your work the last couple of years. You have a very impressive resume – top of your training classes, former G.I. Joe, skilled actress, multi-lingual, the list goes on. And I'm going to be blunt with you. We think your skills are going to waste in your current assignment."

Alison wholeheartedly agreed with the sentiment. Stuart continued, "I know your current commitment ends in a couple of months. Coincidentally, we are going to have a spot open up in one of our European divisions in the next few weeks. If you're interested, I would like for you to meet the team. Depending how that goes, we can then start a serious discussion of a job offer."

Alison struggled to keep her enthusiasm in check. While it seemed like an awesome opportunity, she had a few logistical questions. "Would I need to relocate to somewhere in Europe?"

Stuart shook his head. "No, you would be stationed out of Langley. But there will be travel to Europe involved."

"How often and for how long?"

"I know this a vague answer, but it truly depends on the assignment. The team you would be working with, in the past few months, have had four or five trips to Germany and Italy. The average time away has been about a week."

Alison nodded. It didn't sound like too much of a grueling schedule. However, she was fairly certain that Flint wouldn't be as enthusiastic about the travel opportunities. "Stuart, I would like to meet the team and learn more about this position. But I do need to discuss this with my husband first."

"Of course," Stuart answered.

Their meals were delivered and Alison took the a few moments while she started to eat to contemplate the positives and negatives about the potential job. She decided that she wanted to fully disclose her personal situation to make sure that wasn't going to be an issue. "Stuart, I also want to be completely honest with you. You may know that Dash and I have a toddler at home. We've also been trying for a second child, and I should know in a few days if our latest attempt was successful."

"I appreciate your candor and bringing that to my attention. Obviously we would have to modify your duties if and when a pregnancy should occur. A question I have, if it does happen, would you be looking to take an extended amount time off, or possibly not return to work?"

"As long as there are no complications, I would only be looking to take a standard maternity leave."

Stuart smiled. "Well, then that doesn't sound like a deal breaker to me. Why don't you take a few days to think about it, and talk it over with your husband. Give me a call early next week, and if you want to pursue this, I'll bring you over to Langley."

Alison agreed to the plan, and they made small talk as they finished their meal. When Alison returned to her office, Flint was off on his assignment. Alison was happy for the reprieve, as she wanted to wait and discuss the job offer once they were in the privacy of their own home.

Late in the afternoon a few days later, Alison was signing Marissa out of the daycare. She was once again amazed that one nineteen-month-old could make a daycare pick-up so hectic. Part of the problem was that while she was pretty good at deciphering most of her daughter's babbling, she still had to devote a good chunk of her mental capacity to do it. So when she needed to inventory her diaper bag while receiving the daily report from one of the daycare workers all while trying to keep up her end of the conversation with Marissa, it made for a fairly stressful ten minutes. Especially since for the third evening in a row, Flint had a convenient excuse for getting out of daycare pickup duties.

So she was distracted and only half paid attention to the daycare attendant, Katie's, recap until a comment caught her attention. Alison thought she misheard Katie and asked her to repeat herself. "I said, I'm going to miss Marissa after you move."

"We're moving?" Alison asked dumbly. She had barely seen Flint the last seventy-two hours, and had never had a chance to discuss her meeting with Stuart. He too had apparently been working on something without her knowledge.

Katie was oblivious to Alison's confusion. "Is it not definite? I assumed it was, based on Mr. Faireborn's questions about our disenrollment policy."

Alison scoffed. "This is all news to me. Did my husband happen to mention where we were moving to?"

"Arizona, I think."

Alison almost let out a curse but then she remembered the parrot-like repeating ability her daughter currently possessed. Marissa was also getting visibly annoyed that she was being ignored, and that only fueled her anger at Flint. She mumbled a response and bent over to pick up Marissa.

Katie finally clued into her gaffe. "I'm sorry. I have a habit of blurting out stuff I probably shouldn't."

"No, I'm glad you told me. He couldn't have kept this a secret forever."

On the drive home, Alison fumed as she replayed Flint's behavior of the last couple of days. She had noticed he had become distant, and a bit secretive. If he was making plans to return to the Joe team, it would also explain the late nights he had been working recently. But she had been too distracted by her own thoughts of her future options to really pay attention to the signs.

Flint didn't get home until after she had fed, bathed and put Marissa to bed. It was a fact she was happy about, because she didn't want to have a screaming match in front of the child. She even had enough time to have a half glass of wine before he walked through the door. She had run through a variety of witty opening lines but she actually kept quiet at first while she stewed in her anger.

"I'm sorry I'm late again," Flint said as he rummaged through the kitchen. "And I promise that tomorrow I will make it a point to pick-up Marissa."

That was the opening Alison needed. "I actually didn't mind getting her today. I had a very enlightening talk with Katie," she paused as she decided to use one of the zingers she had come up with. "So were you ever going to tell me we're relocating, or were you just going to wait for the movers to do it for you?"

Flint laughed. "We're not moving."

"Well, that's a relief. I'll have to tell Katie when I see her in the morning. Obviously she must have misunderstood you when she said you talked to her about disenrolling Marissa."

Flint paused for only a moment before resuming his preparations of a reheated meal. "She's making a much bigger deal out of it than it is. When I dropped Marissa off this morning, there was another father talking to them about transferring, and I followed up on the questioning. Since we've been throwing out options about what come next, I just wanted to have all the information."

Alison wanted to believe him, but there was still one thing bothering her. "Then why did you tell her we're moving to Arizona? That seems awfully suspicious since that is where the Joe team is located."

He appeared to ignore her question. When he finished up in the kitchen, he joined her on the couch. Turning to her, he said, "I was researching some options on my own. I didn't want to come to you until I had all the facts, so we could have an intelligent discussion before any decisions were made."

Alison shook her head. "Why do I get the feeling that there aren't multiple options, but only one?"

Flint sighed. "Okay, fine. I was tossing out some feelers about rejoining the Joe team. But like I said, I wasn't going to make any rash decisions. I wanted to research how this would affect you and Marissa if you moved back to Arizona with me."

"And?"

Flint sighed again. "Marissa's not an issue, we could have her set up in a new daycare without much of a problem. But for you, let's just say that your employment options with the Joe team are just as non-existent."

"That doesn't surprise me."

"I know. But I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask. Al, I'm sorry, I should have talked to you earlier, but I just figured it was wishful thinking on my part, that it was just a phase I needed to work through. But ever since the Red Shadows mission, I couldn't help but wish I could spend more time in the field. Even with the thoughts I struggled with on that mission, I realized I miss that lifestyle. So I just wanted to look into whether it was something we could pull off."

Alison knew exactly the kind of thoughts he had been wrestling with. It was the same thoughts that kept her up at night, especially since Agent Edwards had his chat with her. "Okay, so let's talk about this."

Flint stood, walked into the kitchen, and returned with the bottle of wine. He topped off her glass. "Like I said, you're not going to get a civilian job offer with Anvil and the Joes. That stunt you pulled with Ace and the Skystriker didn't score you any additional points with him. But I thought that might be okay, if this month we were successful in creating Marissa's baby brother or sister."

This time Alison sighed. "Yet again, we weren't."

"I know. I figured that out last night. But still, maybe it's not a bad idea if we move to Arizona, and maybe work on that full time?"

Alison had to clamp down on her anger. There were so many things wrong with his comment. Ignoring the fact that she thought they already had been working on getting pregnant 'full time', she had to confront the incredibly sexist part of his plan. "So you want to rejoin the Joe team, and for me to sit home all day waiting for you to impregnate me?"

"No, of course not. I'm sure you could find a job somewhere, and if not, there is always Marissa."

Alison took a long sip from her wine glass. "I can't believe I have to have this conversation again with you. You know how much I love her, and how much I love being her mother. But I'm also not cut out to be a stay at home mom."

Flint patted her thigh. "I think you're selling yourself short. Just look at my mother. She had a great job, until she had my brother, and then quit to raise us. She always talked about how it was the best thing she ever did."

Alison had to refrain from looking at her watch to see how long it took Flint to bring his mother into one of their arguments. But she resisted the temptation to once again point out she was nothing like Marie. That would only derail the conversation. "So is this a done deal? Do you have orders?"

"No, not yet. While both generals are on board, nothing has been done to set a transfer in motion."

Alison rose from the couch. It was time to come clean about her own potential career change. She hoped Flint meant it when he said he really wanted to discuss various possibilities. "Okay, good. I may need you to put that idea on hold. I was offered my own opportunity to work with the CIA as an analyst."

"What?" Flint said as he jumped up. "Is this what that lunch with 007 was about?"

Alison nodded. "Operative Edwards said I've been on the CIA radar for a while. With my commitment at the Pentagon coming to an end, he wanted to talk to me about coming on board."

"That lunch was days ago, and you're just telling me this now?" Flint said.

"Yes, because like you I needed a little time to process everything and figure out what I wanted."

Flint laughed. "And you have the nerve to bust my balls for keeping secrets?"

"Don't go all high and mighty on me. I probably should have told you the truth right after the lunch, but I really did need time to think. And then when I was ready to have a discussion, you went MIA. You've worked late every night this so week, so when was I supposed to talk to you?"

"I'm sorry about that. I had some things I needed to take care of," Flint mumbled.

Alison closed her eyes and shook her head. She knew she was probably in for a long night. But it was time that they put all of their issues out on the table. "What does that mean? You and I both know that you haven't been doing anything work related these last few evenings." She paused as she was afraid to ask the next question. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No!" Flint answered.

"So what have you been doing?"

Flint paced. "Part of my time has been spent looking into returning to the Joe team. One night Duke and I got into a long conversation, and I lost track of time. And the other nights I've been looking into our fertility problem."

That surprised Alison. "Dash, it's only been a few months. I don't think we're at a problem point just yet. It may be that my birth control is taking longer to wear off."

Flint nodded. "That's basically what the doctor said."

"You went to a doctor?"

Flint ran his hand through his hair. "I did. I just wanted to rule out that there wasn't anything wrong with me."

"Is there?"

"No. I have a very healthy sperm count."

The grin on his face made Alison smile for the first time that evening. She took a seat back on the couch and patted the spot next to her. Flint walked over and sat next to her. "I have to admit that I was waiting on making any kind of decision regarding the CIA until I found out if I was pregnant. But then when I got my period, I thought maybe that was a sign that I can have a second chance at field work."

Flint grabbed her hands. "How much traveling will be involved?"

"It's hard to tell. It'll be based on the political landscape in the coming year. I'll be stationed at Langely, but I will be working the European division, so some overseas travel is likely."

"And what would that mean about working on a second child?"

"I was very honest with Agent Edwards, and I told him that we were working on expanding our family. He said that arrangements could be made if and when I became pregnant. So if I took the job it doesn't mean we have to stop our plans. But I do have a request to take a break for a couple of months. It's something I've been thinking about the last few weeks. I don't necessarily want to go back to preventing a pregnancy, but I think I want to stop actively trying. It's been such a roller coaster of emotions the last few months, and honestly that has made our lovemaking more stressful than fun."

"That I agree with."

Alison squeezed his hand. "I know I'm asking a lot of you to let me do this, and we have so many unknowns about what our future may bring. So I also told Agent Edwards that if I did take the job it would be in a trial capacity. He told me that was fine as the CIA right now was just looking for me to commit to a year."

"When do they need to know? Can I take some time to think about it?"

Alison nodded. "I told Agent Edwards I would let him know by the end of the week. So let's sleep on it, and talk again tomorrow. Maybe, if you don't have to work late again, I can get a sitter to watch Marissa and we could do dinner out?"

"That sounds nice, and it shouldn't be a problem leaving at a decent time tomorrow."

Flint was true to his word, and they got to the restaurant the following night without a hitch. It was a nice dinner, and they chatted about several harmless topics. But as the evening went on, Alison realized Flint seemed to be making a pointed effort of avoiding the main topic of conversation. She was going to call him on it as their dinner plates got cleared away, but she decided that she didn't want to cause a scene in the restaurant.

She waited until the bill was paid and they walked outside. "So, are we going to discuss my potential job or are we just going to ignore it for a while longer?"

Flint stopped. "Do you want to wait until we get home to talk?"

"I don't. The point of this dinner out was so that we weren't distracted by Marissa."

Flint looked up and down the street and then led her to a coffee shop. They picked one of the few remaining open tables, and he asked her if she wanted anything. She declined, so she sat at the table and fumed over Flint's continuing stall tactics.

Once he returned and took the seat opposite her he said, "Alison, I did give it a lot of thought. And I know it's something that you're interested in pursuing. I'm just not sure if right now the timing is right for our family."

Alison nodded and stayed remarkably calm. It was probably due to the fact that based on his behavior she knew that his decision was not going to be good news for her. "I agree it's not ideal."

Flint looked relieved. "It's not. Marissa is still so young, and I don't like the idea of pushing aside the chance to have another baby."

"Dash, it'll only be temporary. I just want to wait and see what kind of lifestyle the new job entails. Once I get settled in, I do want to go back to trying for a baby."

"But how would that work if you're traveling Europe, or working late hours on an international crisis?"

"I don't know. That's why I want to wait and see what the job is actually like. Maybe it will be more strenuous and time consuming than I thought. That's why I'm only going to work at it for a year."

Flint laughed. "You and I both know that you have no intention of staying a year."

Alison's mouth fell open. "Really? That is news to me. Because I was under the impression that I don't have a crystal ball and I really have no idea how I would feel about any of this a year from now."

"Come on. You don't know you're going to fall in love with the espionage and the travel? Once you're hooked you're not going to give that up."

"Okay, let's just say you're right and I do fall in love with the job. Is that such a bad thing? If I continue as I have been doing the last two years and finding a way to make my career and family work together why is that so terrible?"

"This is different. We're not talking about you going to an office and coming home every night. I assume this will mean days and weeks away from home. Maybe some of the missions will be dangerous. That will put a lot of strain on our family."

Alison paused. "You're right, it will be hard on all of us. And maybe I should turn down the offer for the good of our family. Since we're both committed to doing what is best for our family, I'm sure that all of this deep introspection made you realize that it's also a mistake for you to return to the Joe team. Because that too will mean days and weeks away from home doing dangerous work."

Flint didn't respond, but the look on his face gave Alison his answer. She felt her blood pressure begin to rise, but she clamped down on her anger. As much as she wanted to throw one of her famous tantrums, she knew that was only going to make an ugly scene. She leaned back in her chair and looked around the cafe, where the patrons seemed to be ignoring their spat.

She took a deep breath. "Dash, we could go all night yelling at each other over who's being more selfish in this situation. But that's not going to get us anywhere. So I'm just going to ask you to please let me do this."

"Let's go home," Flint said. They drove home in silence. They paid the babysitter, checked on Marissa, and as they climbed into bed Flint finally gave her his decision with a simple, "Okay".


	11. Chapter 11

Alison thought back to that conversation in the restaurant as she sat on the balcony of her Parisian apartment. Nearly six months had passed since Flint had begrudgingly given his blessing. She had started her new position after the first of the year. At first little had changed, other than her work address. Most of her time was spent training at Langley during the day and then having her nights and weekends free to be with Flint and Marissa.

By mid-February she had begun to see field work. The first few missions were only a couple of days long, and the three of them seemed to be coping well with her new schedule. A month later she was given her first meaty assignment – tracking a potential terrorist cell in France. Her initial trip to Paris lasted ten days. She was then home for a couple of weeks that luckily coincided with Marissa's second birthday. But then, three days later she had flown back to Paris and had been there ever since.

What had made the near month-long separation bearable was that she had been paired up with an excellent partner, Sean Murphy, and they had been given an interesting and challenging assignment. Their main cover was posing as an Irish couple that had taken a sabbatical from their jobs to spend some time in Paris. The two had good-naturedly argued over their cover nationalities, as Alison had petitioned to pose as a Scottish couple. But then they learned that Alison could fake an Irish accent better than Sean could fake a Scottish one, so she had lost the argument.

Flint had not been happy when he had learned what her identity was going to be. "I just don't understand why you have to pretend to be married," he had said the night before she had left.

Alison took a break from her packing to face him. She had ignored the first two times he had made a similar comment but it was clear he was not going to drop the matter, and she was trying her best to not leave on a bad note. She rubbed his cheek. "All that means is that we have the same last name on our passport."

He pulled away with a grumble. "And you're sharing a hotel room."

"No, it's an apartment with multiple rooms. Just like we did on the last trip."

"On the last trip you went with a team of operatives, not just with him."

Alison's desire to keep the peace was quickly fading. "Dash, if you're not going to trust me this isn't going to work. Maybe we have to hold hands to keep up the façade in the public, but that's probably as far as we need to take it."

"Probably?" Flint asked.

"Yes, probably," Alison spat out. "But If I really want it to be convincing, I could imitate our own marriage and just fight all the time." It was a low blow, and Alison immediately regretted saying it. Before she could apologize, Marissa ran into their bedroom and asked to play one of the new games she had gotten for her birthday.

The two had put aside their anger and played with Marissa until her bedtime. By the time they too went to bed, both had calmed down. Alison was the first to apologize. "Dash, I'm sorry. I know this is hard on you, and I know I'm asking a lot, but this is important to me. I have a chance to do some good in this world, so please work with me on this."

Flint pulled her into his arms. "I know, and I'm sorry too. I'm just going to miss you. And I hate that you have no idea when you are coming back."

"I'm hoping it's a couple of weeks at most. Once I get back, lets plan on a Memorial Day Weekend getaway. We can take Marissa to the beach."

Flint kissed her. "That sounds like fun."

Unfortunately though, as Alison shifted in her chair on her Parisian balcony and kept a look out on the building across the street for signs of activity, Memorial Day was fast approaching and she seemed to be no closer to a return home date. A fact that she had been reminded about either directly, or indirectly with her recent phone calls with Flint.

She heard the apartment door open, so she turned her thoughts from her personal problems to her professional ones. She rose from her chair and met Sean in the living room who had just returned from meeting with their handler to get an update on the activity back home.

"How's your hangover, sweetie?" Sean had asked. Even though there had been an initial sweep of the apartment for listening devices, keeping up the charade while in their apartment was one of the many precautions they had taken to keep their cover intact.

"I'm hoping by the end of this trip I will get used to French wine."

"I brought you the newspaper. However, I'm not sure there is anything in there to cheer you up."

Alison unfolded the paper and saw the latest report the team back in Langley generated about their assignment. She scanned through it quickly. "You're right. I think I am going to take a shower."

"I'll join you," Sean said.

They entered the bathroom and Alison turned on the water. Sean also turned on a radio to add to the noise level of the small bathroom. "What the hell is this?" Alison asked. "This can't be the latest report. It doesn't include anything we reported in the last two days."

"I know. Apparently they are still vetting the accuracy of it."

"They have to vet it? Not only did we actually see them meet with known members of the IRA, but we got photos of it. What more do they want?"

"I don't know," Sean said with a sigh. "But I have more bad news. They want us to take a break from the surveillance."

"Are we going home?"

Sean shook his head. "No. The O'Leary's are heading back to Belfast. But then the LeFevre's are returning from their honeymoon in London."

Alison and Sean had been given three potential identities to use during the assignment. Francois and Marie LeFevre were Parisian newlyweds that lived near the heart of the city. "Well, at least I don't have to pretend to fumble through my French words while faking an Irish accent." Alison had gotten the hang of that skill fairly early. And it proved useful pretending to not know that language. She had learned a lot from the French who had assumed she couldn't understand a word they were saying.

"When do we leave?"

Sean looked at his watch. "Our driver is picking us up in less than half an hour."

Alison looked at the running shower. "Okay, I better make this quick. I'm going to jump in and then pack up."

Sean flashed her a charming smile. "I'd offer to join you, but we don't have time." He then walked out of the bathroom, leaving her alone.

Alison was bothered by his comment. It wasn't the first time that Sean had made innuendos that either he had blown off as a joke or claimed was part of their act. She was probably reading too much into his actions, but she also couldn't help but think about Flint's concerns about Sean crossing the line.

She didn't dwell on it as she was crunched for time. She showered, packed up her few belongings and was ready when their driver handpicked by the CIA took them to the airport. They both though it was overkill to actually fly to Belfast, change into their traveling identities to take the flight to London, and then become the LeFevre's for their return trip to Paris. However, the CIA had insisted on following procedures.

It was early afternoon the following day when they finally arrived at their new apartment. Once they were settled, Alison took a walk so she could call Flint to give him an update. "So what does this mean?" Flint asked gruffly.

"To be honest I don't know. Hopefully we're in a holding pattern for only a short time."

"What's a short time? A few days? Or weeks?"

Alison exhaled sharply. "I told you, I don't know."

"Fine," Flint answered. He remained quiet for so long that Alison figured the conversation was over but then he said. "Marissa started potty-training."

Alison felt the guilt for missing out on the experience. But she kept her voice upbeat. "How's that going?"

"Okay, I guess. She's excited by it, but it's stressful. Since I'm doing this by myself I've been getting a lot of advice from my sister. But I can't wait forever for you to come home to help me."

Alison got his message loud and clear. "Okay, Dash, you win. You're the better parent and spouse. Thank you for stepping in to make sure our daughter has a normal life, since I'm obviously a terrible mother."

"Al, wait, I'm sorry."

Alison's frustration was bubbling to the surface and she didn't want to have an outburst on the phone while on the streets of Paris. "I have to go. I'll call you when I can," she said sadly.

Alison took a long walk to try and clear her head. She returned to the apartment exhausted from the mental and emotional challenges of the last few weeks. She went to the bedroom she had claimed as her own, and slept for a couple of hours.

When she woke she saw that it was nearly dark. She went out into the living room and saw Sean sitting on one of the couches. "I was starting to get concerned, and debated waking you but I figured you needed a good long nap."

"I did," Alison said, although she had to admit her mood hadn't improved.

"Come on, let's get dinner."

Alison agreed. They went to a bistro not far from their apartment. Her meal was delicious, although she knew she wasn't much of a conversationalist. She was once again lost in her thoughts about Flint and Marissa when Sean said, "And it's obvious you have not heard a word I said."

His comment was enough to startle Alison from her thoughts. She sighed. "You're right, I'm sorry."

Sean grabbed the bottle of wine and poured some into her glass. They were working on bottle number two, which Alison knew she was going to regret in the morning. But at the moment the wine was delicious and exactly what she needed. "Do you want to talk?" he asked.

Alison shook her head and took a large sip of her wine. "No, it's fine. Just yet another unsettling conversation with my husband."

"It doesn't sound fine. Everything okay back home?"

Alison debated how much she wanted to confide in Sean. He was a work partner, nothing more, and he wasn't supposed to be her shoulder to cry on. But she wanted an outlet for her frustrations, and the wine was making it hard to once again stifle her feelings.

"It is. Dash just let me know that Marissa has started potty training."

Sean laughed. "That sounds stressful."

"I know it is. But he wanted to make sure I acknowledged the fact that he's single-handedly teaching her how to do it. Which of course, brings on the mom guilt full-force, as it's yet another milestone I'm missing."

Sean leaned back in his chair. "Not having a wife or child myself, I can't imagine how hard it must be for you to be away from them."

Alison thought back to the day that she left them. How Marissa was reaching for her, wailing her name, while Flint did his best to console her. She remembered seeing the pain on his face, and she wondered if he felt worse about Alison breaking Marissa's heart or his own. "It is hard. But I justified it when I thought I had something important to do. Now we're just wasting our time, which means the only thing I'm doing is losing my family."

"Alison, nobody is happy about this extension. But from what I hear, it's not going to be long. Within a couple of weeks, we'll be back in the States and you can bond again with Dash and Marissa."

Alison took another sip and was a bit surprised to see the glass was then empty. "Luckily, Marissa is only two so she shouldn't hold it too much against me. Dash, on the other hand." She trailed off as she thought about Flint, and the last time they were separated for a long length of time. The first few months of Marissa's life had been excruciating as she tried to adjust to new motherhood by herself. But she had always made a point of trying to not make Flint feel bad about the time he had spent away from the two of them. "And that's what pisses me off," she blurted out. "I let him live his life without heaping on the guilt, why can't he do the same for me?"

"Let's take a walk," Sean said. He flagged down the server, and paid the check. They then exited the restaurant onto the Parisian street. Nights in European cities had always been Alison's favorite. The way they looked and felt were so different from the United States. The night was cool, but not overly so, but the air enhanced her intoxication.

They walked a couple of blocks before Sean spoke. "Alison, as your partner on this mission, I need to know, are you okay to continue?"

Alison was taken aback by the question. "Yes, of course. I'm just venting after a bad phone call."

Sean stopped walking. "It's more than just tonight. I've noticed lately that you haven't been on your 'A' game."

Alison was going to argue, but she knew he was right. She hadn't realized that she had let her personal issues interfere with her work. "I'm sorry about that. I have been distracted. And please, if it's interfering with our mission," she started but Sean quieted her.

"Alison, it's not the mission I care about, it's you. I've gotten to know you pretty well these last few weeks, and you're too good of a person to be this miserable. From everything you've told me, you're a great agent, mother and wife, and if your husband doesn't realize that, then he's an idiot."

Even though Alison had been having similar thoughts, hearing Sean say them made her want to defend Flint. "He's not. He's just angry that we can't be together."

Sean stared at her for several seconds. "I hope that's all it is, and that you're not just blinded by your responsibility to Marissa. My brother spent so many years caught up in the idea of being a perfect father to his kids that he didn't realize how unhappy he was until his wife asked for a divorce."

Alison bristled at the idea. "Whoa, you're blowing this way out of proportion. I love Dash, and he loves me. Divorce isn't even a consideration."

"I hope for your sake, you're right. As I said before, you deserve happiness. Which, to be honest, I've seen more of when you're pretending to be my wife, then when you talk about your life with Dash."

Alison took a step back as warning bells began to go off in her head. "Sean, that's just an act."

He bridged the gap between them. "I know that's something you have to tell yourself, but I've spent too much time with you to believe it's all a farce." He leaned over to kiss her. She accepted for a moment, but then she pushed him away. She turned away from him and began to quickly walk back to their apartment.

"Alison, wait," Sean said as he chased after her. "Don't run away, I'm sorry."

Alison thought about ignoring him, but she had one thing she wanted to say to him. "Damn it, Sean. I made the boundaries quite clear when we started this assignment. I have a family that I love more than anything else in this world, and I'm not going to lose them."

She continued her walk back to the apartment, and mercifully Sean left her alone. Once she was in her room she called her home. She wasn't about to tell Flint what had just happened, but she still wanted to hear his voice and talk to him. Unfortunately her voice mail picked up. She realized right away that he had changed it. "You have reached Dash and Alison and Marissa!" her two year old had added enthusiastically to their standard greetings. Hearing their voices made her miss them even more. She hung up without leaving a message.

She then undressed and went to bed. She was awoken a couple of hours later by the ringing of the phone. At first she was going to ignore it, but she knew instinctively that it had to be Flint. With a croak of a voice, she answered the phone.

"Shit, I woke you, didn't I?"

Alison couldn't help but smile. "You did. But it's okay. I really wanted to talk to you again."

The two then apologized in unison, which made Alison smile even more. "Let me talk," Flint said. "I'm sorry about everything I said earlier. I know you have a job to do, and that I should do my best to accept that. And I try. But then there are moments like earlier today, when I wake up tired of being alone, and then I have Marissa asking me when her mother is coming home."

"Dash, believe me, I know how hard it is. And I'm just as frustrated as you. I want to go home just as badly, but I have to follow the orders that are given to me. We tried to fight them, to make our case that we are just wasting our time, but someone much more important than me has made the decision to keep us here. It really shouldn't be much longer."

Back in DC, Flint did his best to accept the news. "I hope so. I love you Alison."

Alison echoed his thoughts and then hung up. Flint turned to watch Marissa. She was freshly bathed and dressed in her pajamas. She was watching one of her favorite TV shows, bouncing and singing along. It filled his heart with such love and pride, which is why he was so disappointed that Alison was missing their time together.

Then he had a thought. They had planned for a long Memorial Day weekend getaway, which he had put on hold once he figured Alison wasn't going to be returning. But if Alison couldn't come to them, maybe he could bring Marissa to her.


	12. Chapter 12

_Author's Note: Happy Winter Solstice! I always think of Skeletons in the Closet on this day. A belated thank you to everyone who have been reading and commenting. I love reading the really nice reviews._

* * *

Alison sat in what passed for their office and stared blankly at the meager report in front of her. She had wasted most of the morning on it, which was ridiculous since she had nothing new to report. Normally she was adept at making up enough bullshit to appease the hire-ups that were still insisting on daily reports. However, after three days of sitting idly by, waiting for the okay to go home, her frustration had grown to outright anger.

Her emotions were compounded by a sense of loneliness. Other than professional matters, she had avoided Sean as much as possible. She had tried to make up for the lack of a conversation partner with more frequent calls to Flint. But each time she had called, he had cut it short, claiming he was very busy. She was starting to wonder if she had done irreparable harm to their marriage.

"It's almost 6 AM in DC," Sean said as he spun around in his chair to face her.

That meant her report was due to be sent in. She shook her head, picked it up and handed it to him. "I guess it's as good as it's going to get."

Sean looked at it and frowned. "There's not much here."

"No kidding, because there is nothing to say. I could do a repeat of yesterday where I practically begged them to put us out of our misery. Maybe by seeing this they'll finally realize we're useless right now."

Sean put it on his desk. "I'll send it over. Why don't you head home? I doubt anything is going to come up this afternoon, but if it does, I'll call you."

Alison didn't argue with the suggestion. As she walked back she decided that she was going to change into her workout gear, and go for a nice long run around the city. She hoped it was what she needed to improve her mood.

The first thing Alison noticed when she walked through the apartment door was what sounded like a flurry of activity coming from her back bedroom. She wondered if her neighbors could be making that much noise, when she saw that there was a bouquet of flowers on her dining room table.

She went on alert for a second until she was accosted by a two-year-old. "Mommy!"

Alison grinned as she bent over to pick up Marissa. Flint walked over to give her a kiss. "What are you doing here? How did you get in?"

"Hold on," Flint said as he nudged Marissa. "Go on."

Marissa smiled. "Bonjour Mama. Comment allez-vous?"

Alison's grin grew. "Tres bien, merci. That was perfect, sweetie!"

"We were both working on our French on our way over here. She picked it up a lot faster than I did. I probably should have had her talk to your landlord."

"Landlord? We don't have one."

Flint frowned. "Then who's the cranky old guy that answered the door and has a key to your apartment?"

Alison laughed. "That's William, our driver, bodyguard and basic Jack-of-all-Trades. I can't believe he just gave you a key to get in."

"I guess Sean gave him the heads up that we were coming. I wanted to surprise you, so when I called Sean to find out where your current location was I told him to keep it quiet."

Alison was touched by the trouble Flint had gone through. She hugged him again. "So what do you want to do? Take a walk? See something old and famous? Get something to eat?"

"To be honest, I'd love a nap as I barely slept on the way over. But I think she's too keyed up to sleep right now."

"How about I walk her over to the little grocery store nearby while you lay down? We can pick up what we need to make lunch here."

"No, I'll come with you. Maybe we can tire her out so we can take a nap together."

Alison smiled. "Sounds like a good plan."

They bought a couple of baguettes and a variety of local meats and cheeses. Marissa was full of energy and alternated running and walking both to and from the store. However, by the time they got back and she ate a little bit of her meal she crashed on the couch. Alison debated moving her to the bed, but the little girl seemed comfortable. So she and Flint took advantage of the opportunity that presented itself and retreated to her bedroom.

Flint woke some time later to the sounds of conversation in the living room. He quickly got dressed and exited the bedroom. Alison was talking with a man Flint assumed was her partner. Marissa was in her arms, still half-asleep. Alison turned to him and smiled. "Dash, this is Sean. He brings good news, we are finally going home."

"That's great news," Flint said as he shook Sean's hand. "When can you leave?"

"As soon as we pick flights and they print up tickets for us," Sean said.

"Then I think we should go out to celebrate. Sean, since I need to thank you for helping us pull off our surprise, how about you join us?"

Sean balked at the suggestion. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm meeting up with a friend. I'm actually going to be staying with her tonight so it'll give you guys use of the full apartment."

"Are you sure?" Flint asked. "We can make do with Alison's room."

Alison put her hand on Flint's shoulder. "We could use the extra room. And if he has plans with a new friend of his, it's a win for all of us."

Flint looked from Alison to Sean and picked up on the tension between them. He started to eye Sean suspiciously. "She's right, the extra space will be nice."

Once Sean left, Flint turned to Alison. "What happened between you two?"

Alison ignored the question and instead focused on Marissa, who was still groggily sitting on the floor half-heartedly playing with a couple of the toys Flint had brought with him. "Stay here, sweetie. Mommy and Daddy are going to our bedroom to get dressed for dinner."

"I watch Elmo?" Marissa asked.

"I don't think they have Sesame Street here," Alison replied. She turned on the television and flipped through the channels until she found a cartoon that was of course, in French. Marissa didn't seem bothered by that fact, and became mesmerized in the screen.

Flint watched Marissa for a moment and decided he wouldn't be surprised if she actually picked up on some of the dialogue. Alison grabbed his hand and pulled him into the bedroom. She shut the door behind them and said, "I don't want to fight."

"I don't either. But I also don't want to jump to conclusions and assume something that is hopefully worse that what actually happened."

"It is nothing serious." Alison sighed. "But Sean did try to kiss me the other night. I quickly put an end to it, told him how strongly I feel about you and warned him to never do that again."

Flint felt an initial irrational burst of anger at her confession, but it quickly dissipated and was replaced by a strange sense of calmness. "Okay," he simply said.

Alison eyed him for a moment. "That's it?"

Flint wrapped his arms in front of his chest. "Why? Are you looking for me to get upset?"

"No, not at all. I'm just not used to you acting rationally when another man may be involved."

Flint sat on the bed and grinned. Alison took a seat next to him, and he pulled her into his arms. "It's a bizarre feeling for me as well. I had my standard reaction at first, but then I realized that I trust you."

Alison smiled. "Well, I'm glad it only took a few years of dating and two and a half years of marriage for you to come to that conclusion."

* * *

Two days later they returned to Alison's apartment after another busy day touring Paris. She noticed there was a note from Sean on the refrigerator. 'I'm leaving tomorrow morning. Langley needs to know your plans ASAP.'

Alison scoffed at the note. "That's funny. They leave us hanging for days and now suddenly they are in a hurry." She turned towards Flint. "So, what's our plan?"

Flint debated his choices for a moment. He could tell that Alison had grown tired of her temporary home and was ready to move on. However, he had really enjoyed the impromptu vacation with Alison and Marissa and he wasn't in a hurry to return to DC. So he offered what he considered to be a compromise, "Do you want to spend a few days in London?"

Alison gasped. "Really? Don't you have to get back?"

"I can probably swing the few extra days of leave. That is of course, if you can as well."

"That won't be a problem. They know they owe me. Why don't you get clearance first, and then I'll talk to the powers that be on my end."

Flint looked at his watch. It was currently early afternoon on the Sunday of Memorial Day. He hated to bother Hawk on what was probably his weekend off, but Flint dialed his cell phone. Not surprisingly, he got his voice mail. He left a message to call him back.

They went to dinner, and Flint still had not received a return call by the time they came home. That was extremely unusual for the General, so Flint tried his cell again, and once again he got Hawk's voice mail. Taking a chance, Flint called Hawk's desk number, and frowned when Stalker answered.

"Sorry, Wilkerson, I thought I called Hawk's number."

"You did. Since the General is up to his eyeballs right now, I've been answering his phone. What's going on?"

"Nothing important. I was thinking about extending my leave by a couple of days," Flint said. He then clued into the fact that something serious seemed to be amiss back home. "Is everything okay there?"

Stalker hesitated for a second. "I'm guessing you haven't put the news on in the last few hours."

Flint's heart stopped. He turned to Alison. "Do we get an international news station?"

"I think so. Probably the BBC."

"Put it on," Flint said gravely. He put the phone on speaker.

Alison did and they were greeted with the image of smoke pouring from a building. "What is that?" The two asked in unison.

"I'm not sure what footage they are showing you, but a bomb was detonated at the Bank of America building in Atlanta. There was another explosion at the main Hawaiian Electric facility that knocked out power to most of the islands," Stalker answered. "Both events occurred simultaneously at 10:15 AM Eastern Time and 4:15 AM Hawaiian time. A third bomb was found near Boston Harbor, but it hadn't detonated. The bomb squad safely removed it a short time ago."

"What kind of casualties?" Flint asked.

"Thankfully, they were light. The bomb in the Bank of America building detonated in the lobby, which was nearly empty since it was mid-morning on a Sunday of a holiday weekend. And it looks like the explosion at Hawaiian Electric was meant to take out equipment, not people. Last report I saw, there were a few injuries but so far no deaths."

Alison had been studying the recap on the television screen. She suddenly jumped up and asked. "You said the explosions occurred at 10:15 and 4:15? If you convert that to dates those are the two times that the Red Shadows attacked."

"Good catch, and that was a connection that was made here as well, which is why Hawk has been incommunicado for the last few hours."

Flint looked at Alison, who nodded. "Tell Hawk to ignore my messages. We're coming home."


	13. Chapter 13

Alison sat at her desk trying to absorb all the new Red Shadows information. Technically she was still assigned to the terrorist sect in Paris, but since there were no new updates there, she thought she would be proactive and read as many as the reports that had come out of the attack that she could.

She finished reading one and placed it on her desk. She then sat back and processed what she had read. It seemed like there were dozens of CIA operatives that had given their opinions and theories, but Alison wanted to get a handle on what her thoughts were. The Red Shadows had set off two explosions at the times that corresponded to their two previous attacks. But the locations were what puzzled her. Why Hawaii and Atlanta? If they wanted a simultaneous event that occurred six time zones apart, than they might have been forced into focusing on Honolulu. But if the Red Shadows wanted to remind the US public of their previous attacks, why wasn't DC targeted?

And what about the bomb that never detonated in Boston? Was that a sign that the Red Shadows were getting careless? Regardless, what did Boston Harbor and the Bank of America building in Atlanta have in common? Were they signaling a potential threat against the US banking system? She thought back to when Cobra had tried to destroy the world currencies. In his post-mission brief Flint said that Vaughn had made the comment that they had learned from Cobra's mistakes. Had they found a better way to cripple the financial system?

Alison stayed lost in her thoughts until she heard her name being called. The CIA Director, Tom Rollins, approached her desk. She instantly went on alert. "Stuart and his team are currently tied up chasing down a couple of leads. Can you come with me to the briefing and report on their findings?"

"Absolutely," Alison replied. Ever since she had returned from Paris, she had been trying to get into the Red Shadows investigation. She hoped this might be a chance to do so.

"Good. The meeting is in half an hour."

Alison wasted no time collating the reports in front of her into a manageable pile. Since she hadn't come up with her own theory that felt right to her, she made notations that outlined the most popular theories of the moment. She then jotted down other critical points until it was time to attend the briefing.

Alison walked into the war room and wasn't surprised to see Hawk and Flint seated at the long table. About half of the Jugglers' seats had been taken. Hawk was deep in conversation with General Cavanaugh, while Flint looked on with a frown.

Shortly after Alison had taken her seat, the room filled up and the meeting began. They wasted no time getting to the heart of the matter. The Chief of Staff to the President was the first to speak. "The President is currently grilling the heads of Hawaiian Electric to find out how the Red Shadows were able to cause a second power outage in this country, so he asked me to receive this debriefing. Since I know we are all extremely busy, let's keep this short. The number one question he still has, is how did we let this happen again? I thought the Red Shadows were eliminated as a threat."

Hawk was the first to speak. "We never said we had eradicated the Red Shadows threat. We may have captured Vaughn, and a handful of their operatives, but," He didn't get a chance to finish his sentence as the Chief of Staff waved for him to stop.

"I really don't want to spend my limited time hearing a bunch of excuses. The president wants a written report outlining all the inadequacies that led to this." He again waved for quiet as Hawk and the other generals began to balk at the request. "His words, not mine. But let's move on. From what I understand the consensus is that this was another warning from the Red Shadows. If that is the case, when and where are they going to attack next?" The Chief of Staff asked.

Alison nearly laughed at the absurdity of the question. Hawk looked at Director Rollins who nodded and faced the Chief of Staff. "I'm sure you understand that is not an easy question to answer. We have a list of what we consider to be high-target areas that might give an indication as to where. But to pinpoint an exact time at this point is impossible."

The Chief of Staff stared down the director. "You and I both know how," he paused as he considered his next words, "demanding our president can be. The question I asked you is exactly what he asked me. I can't tell him our answer is a list of popular locations and a calendar."

Director Rollins scoffed. "Oh, so now the President wants to hear my opinion? I thought he had no faith in the CIA."

"Tom, this is no time to get into a pissing match," Hawk cautioned.

"General Abernathy is correct. Can't you at least narrow down the time frame? Are we looking at an imminent attack? Or one that's farther down the road?" the Chief of Staff asked.

Director Rollins nodded at Alison who read from one of the sheets of paper in front of her. She did her best to quickly condense the pages of notes into a short summary. "Based on the information we were able to gather from their Headquarters in Idaho, they seem awfully fond of sending a message. We think the bomb left at Boston Harbor is the biggest clue that they intend to disrupt Fourth of July festivities. If we consider the location of the two other attacks as a clue, a prime target is the Peachtree Road Race that Atlanta holds on Fourth of July or the firework display that Honolulu puts on. But those are total stabs in the dark. Atlanta is a city of nearly a half million people, with major sporting events, concerts, and festivals that would all be ripe targets for terrorists. Oahu has more than five million tourists a year. Attacking one of their wide-open beaches would leave hundreds of casualties."

The Chief of Staff scribbled down notes and then looked up. "Okay. I'll have the president reach out to the governors of Georgia and Hawaii, as well as the mayors of Atlanta and Honolulu. I'll them to step up security for the high-profile events on the Fourth of July."

Director Rollins nodded, "That's a good start, but I think we need to give serious consideration to expanding the scope. What if the bombs were left in random locations and had nothing to do with telegraphing their next location? Then we would need to consider the large Fourth of July firework displays in the major cities like New York, DC and LA."

Alison decided to add her thoughts as well. "And again, we're making a big assumption that something is even going to happen on the Fourth. As we all know the Red Shadows attacked the Pentagon six months to the day after they triggered the East Coast Blackout. If they're planning the same thing this time, an attack would happen right before Thanksgiving."

"Which is normally when the United States is on high alert," the Director added.

The Chief of Staff closed his notebook. "Well, that works for me. At least it is something to report to the President."

"Sir, that is only one hypothesis of many. And we still haven't narrowed down potential targets," Alison reiterated.

"What's the most likely target at Thanksgiving? The Macy's Parade?" The Chief of Staff asked. "We'll make sure that New York has enough funds and manpower to extend their police presence."

"Sir, you're missing the point," Hawk pleaded but the Chief of Staff waved him off.

"We have a month until the Fourth. Keep your ears open, and if you hear something credible let us know. At least now the President is going to be happy doing something."

The Chief of Staff stood up, indicating an end to the meeting. He left, along with a handful of the Jugglers, but the rest of the room stayed behind, their faces showing various levels of disbelief. Hawk looked at Director Rollins. "We can't just sit here and hope for the best."

"I have no intention of doing that." He stood up and waved at Alison to leave with him. Alison looked at Flint and told him she would see him later at home.

"What can I do to help?" Alison asked once she and Director Rollins entered the hallway.

"Right now I need you and Sean to continue on your assignments. I can't have all of my resources diverted to wild goose chases."

"What about Vaughn? Has anyone interrogated him?" Alison asked.

"That's where Stuart's team is right now. Not only are they questioning him, but they are going over the visitor's logs to see if anyone of note stands out."

Alison nodded. "If you need help with that, I do have some experience of interrogating prisoners from my days on the Joe team."

"I think Stuart has a pretty good handle on it, but I'll keep it in mind."

It was a frustrating answer, and unfortunately Alison spent the next several days feeling like a spectator at her jobsite, while others got to do important work. There was a silver lining three weeks after they had returned from Paris, as they learned that the French military had apprehended several members of the terrorist organization that Sean and Alison had been spying on. A few day later, based on the information they had gathered during their days in Paris, as well as what the French had learned after they infiltrated the hideout, the Joes raided an affiliated cell's home base in Texas, taking several more suspected terrorists into custody.

The following day Director Rollins called Alison into his office to tell her that he was giving her a chance to interrogate Vaughn. Alison wasn't sure if it was because her assignment had come to an official close, if it was due to the Director being pleased with her work, or because the Fourth of July was less than a week away and people were getting nervous.

The next morning Alison pulled up to the gate at Fort Meade. She flashed her credentials and then proceeded to a second checkpoint that included a more in-depth study of her ID and papers. The well-armed guard told her to stay put while he checked with someone on the inside. Alison stared at the concrete barrier in front of her and refrained from making the comment that she wasn't going forward even if she wanted to. After a few minutes, the guard came back and told her she could proceed. It took another few minutes for the barrier to be moved out of her way.

Her destination was only a few hundred yards away, but she had to proceed through a third checkpoint. This time there were multiple armed MPs to greet her. They gave her a pat-down and told her she wasn't allowed to bring anything into the prison. She had been prepared for that possibility and had memorized most of Vaughn's folder. "I'd like to take notes. Can I at least bring in paper and a pen?"

"No Ma'am," the closest MP replied. "They will be provided to you if needed."

She went through a metal detector and was finally allowed to enter the facility. However, she was stopped again in the small lobby area. They collected her ID and told her to take a seat and wait for further clearance. It was a painful thirty minutes as she had nothing to occupy her time but her thoughts. Luckily for her, she had a lot to think about. Finally, a man was buzzed through one of the doors and he walked over to her. "Mrs. Faireborn? Sorry for the delay, but we have strict protocols here. The good news is that you are now in the system so future visits shouldn't take as long."

He waved her through the door he had come through and explained that the facility had not only been rebuilt but fortified after Zartan's prison escape. Alison was brought into a sparse room that had a table, chair and what she assumed was a two-way mirror. She took the seat while her escort stood guard in front of the door. She watched as Vaughn was led in to the room on the opposite side of the mirror and secured to the single chair that was bolted to the floor on his side. She turned to her escort. "Can I get a pad of paper and a pen?"

"Absolutely." He rang a bell by the door, and it was immediately opened by yet another MP. The two men spoke quietly. The MP nodded and returned a short time later with the paper and pen.

Once Alison had the items, she took her time getting settled. She was more than ready to begin the interrogation, but she thought the delay would rattle Vaughn. She stalled for a few minutes more and then began. "Good morning Mr. Vaughn. I have a few questions for you."

"Oh good. I always like a break in my monotonous routine. But do hurry, I have a Mah Jong tournament in forty-five minutes."

"How long this takes depends on how much you cooperate. I want to talk to you about your group's attack on Honolulu and Atlanta."

"First off, since I've been in here for over a year, I no longer have a group that I am associated with. Secondly, even if I did, how could I possibly have any recent information on them?"

"A man in your position normally has connections unknown to us."

"I wish that was true. But I'm afraid it isn't. The only wealth of information I currently possess is a summary of every Law and Order episode I have seen since I've been in here."

"Don't be coy. My coworkers made a list of your visitors since you've been here. A 'Dee Nadel' has come to see you quite frequently. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that anagram translates to Dela Eden, an ex- associate we've been trying to apprehend."

"Don't you find that ironic?" Vaughn asked.

"What? That Dela used a lame alias?"

"No, that Law and Order is one of the most popular shows in here."

Alison sighed in frustration. She kept her composure and continued to quiz Vaughn, but it quickly became apparent that he was going to be of no help. After an hour she nodded to her escort, who unlocked the door and led her back outside.

She returned to Langley and reported to the Director who wasn't surprised. "Don't take it personal. He's been playing games with us for months."

Alison was still disappointed. However, she didn't dwell on it too long as she had a second item on her to-do list for the day. She had suspected for several days that she had returned from Paris with a surprise souvenir, and she wanted to go to her OB-GYN's office to confirm it. She got permission to leave work early to go to the doctor's office.

A positive pregnancy test confirmed her suspicions and she drove home with a huge grin on her face. She had been thinking about the future and what to do after her year with the CIA was over and with this it seemed like the final piece of the puzzle fell into place.

* * *

Flint set the dining room table and he glanced over at Marissa who was engrossed in the picture she was coloring. She had claimed that she hadn't had a chance to finish it in daycare, and wanted to work on it until it was perfect.

Flint walked back into the kitchen and checked on the food that was heating. It was only glorified take-out but considering how busy he and Alison had been since they had returned from Paris, the fact that the three of them were able to eat dinner together was a win. Based on the conversation he had with Hawk earlier that day, he had a feeling that nights like this might be few and far between over the next few weeks.

The front door opened and Alison walked in. Flint picked up on her good mood right away. "I guess the Vaughn interrogation went well?"

"No, that was a disaster. But I received other good news today."

Before she could continue Marissa ran into her arms waving her drawing. "Mommy! I made Big Bob!"

"Big Ben, sweetie," Alison corrected. Now Flint understood why the picture was so important to Marissa. They had been talking on and off about rescheduling their London trip that had been canceled in wake of the Red Shadows news. Flint grimaced. Alison told Marissa to go wash her hands before dinner. Once she was out of the room she asked. "What's the matter?"

Flint sighed. "It's not looking good that I can get the time off anytime soon."

Alison was afraid that was going to happen. "Okay, we can postpone the trip." With a smile she added, "Although if we wait too long we're going to have to buy four airline tickets."

With a confused look, Flint asked. "Who's the fourth?"

"We don't have a name yet, and I don't know if it's a boy or girl, but we would need to bring Marissa's sibling."

Flint did a double take and then grinned. "Sibling? You're pregnant?"

Alison matched his smile. "I stopped by my doctor's office on the way home. So, yes, we're finally having another baby! I guess all we needed was a Parisian holiday."

Flint let out a holler and pulled her into his arms. "Oh, Alison, I'm so happy. How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine, but it's still early. I'm not due until mid-February."

Marissa joined them and wrapped her arms around their legs. "Why so happy?"

Flint began to reply but Alison shook her head. She picked up Marissa and gave her a kiss. "Mommy got good news at work today."

"You get bad guys?"

"Not today, but we're getting close." Alison put her down. "Go sit down, we'll get your dinner."

Alison pulled Flint into the kitchen. "I don't want to tell her yet. It's too early and you see how she is about London. I don't want her asking every day if the baby is here yet."

"Okay," Flint hugged her tight. He was so happy he would have agreed to any request she made. "I love you Alison."


	14. Chapter 14

Flint woke up early on the morning of July Fifth. He had tossed and turned all night, afraid his phone was going to ring with news on an attack somewhere in the country. When he had slept he had nightmares about the Red Shadows. But as he saw the sun shining through the window he realized they had made it through the night.

He picked up his phone that was resting on his night stand to confirm that he hadn't missed a call. He then turned on one of the twenty-four hour news stations. The smiling faces on the anchors as they reported on the latest political news was further confirmation.

Alison stirred awake. She went into the bathroom, and came out rubbing her stomach. "Are you okay?" Flint asked.

"I'm fine. Just a little queasy, but nothing too bad. At this point with Marissa I remember spending most of the first hour of my mornings vomiting."

"I bet that means it's a boy," Flint said.

"If you believe old wives' tales," Alison said. She climbed back into bed. She looked at the screen. "So it ended up being a nice and quiet Fourth."

Flint wrapped his arms around her. Now that their holiday weekend was coming to an end, he had to talk to her about what was coming down the road. Alison snuggled closer to her. "Okay, what's going on?"

Flint couldn't help but smile. She knew his mood intuitively. "Anvil wants me to spend a couple of weeks with the Joe team."

Flint braced himself for the backlash but Alison surprised him. "When do you need to leave?"

"By the end of the week. I didn't commit to anything, I told him I need to talk to you first."

"I think you should go." Alison rolled over to her side. "I've been doing some serious thinking myself about my stint in the CIA. I don't think I'm going to extend my assignment."

That surprised Flint. "Really? Why? I thought you've enjoyed your work."

"For the most part I do. But I thought I would be dealing with less bureaucracy with the CIA once I got out from under the Jugglers. But it's basically the same there. And while I'm proud of what I accomplished in Paris, I don't want to spend that much time away from my family. Especially with this little one on the way."

"Can't you transfer to a desk job?"

"I probably could. To be honest I haven't spoken to the Director about any of this. But I promised you that I was going to try this out for a year. With the baby coming in February, it just seems like the right time to take a step back." Alison sighed. "And to be fair, since you gave me my opportunity, if you want to entertain the idea of rejoining the Joes, I'm on board."

Flint sat back and considered the offer. He had given up on the idea of rejoining the Joes, and had become very happy with the life he had been building with Alison and Marissa. And with another baby, one that might be a son, would make his life complete. But he still felt that familiar call to return to the team he loved. "Let's not make any decisions right now. I'll find out from Anvil is a permanent return is even still on the table."

"Okay. And I have one request. While you're away, I want to take Marissa to London, just for a long weekend. I want to take advantage of the one on one time we have left."

Flint nodded and brought her in for a hug. "I think that would be nice trip for the two of you."

* * *

Flint pushed himself to run a bit faster on his second lap of the running trail behind Joe Headquarters. He knew he was dragging a bit due to the late night he had with Duke and Scarlett. Work was only partially to blame. While they did stay after hours to finish up on some items on their to-do list, the reason Flint ended up hitting the rack close to midnight was due to the good company and an excellent Scotch that Duke had hidden away in his desk.

As Flint neared Beachhead who was screaming several unflattering phrases at the unfortunate Joes who lacked self-motivation, Flint called out with a smile, "Damn, Beach, I'd figured you'd have some new material by now."

"I'm sorry Faireborn am I not paying you enough attention? I took one look at you and I could tell that your desk job has made you fat and lazy, so I wasn't planning on wasting my breath on a lost cause."

Flint had to admit that the insult stung a bit, because deep down he knew it was true. It was one of the many reminders that he wasn't the same man as he had been a few years ago. And neither was the Joe team. That point was hammered home by the fresh faces struggling through Beachhead's PT.

Flint became nostalgic for the past, as he realized he had become the guy that started to reminisce about the good old days. He missed having Lady Jaye running by his side, as she would tell Beachhead exactly what she thought of him. But as much as a part of him missed the past, the happiness and contentment he felt for the present, and excitement for the future made up for it.

The woman that he had fallen so desperately in love with here at Joe Headquarters was now his wife, mother of his daughter and mother-to-be of his second child. He knew he was a lucky man.

His thoughts were disturbed by the ringing of his phone. Flint ran off the course and pulled the phone out of his back pocket. He didn't recognize the number, but he answered it.

"Flint, it's Sean Murphy, Alison's partner?"

"Yes, of course. How are you?"

"Not good. I've actually been trying to get a hold of Alison. Do you know where she is?"

"Yeah, she's in London with Marissa."

"I know. But do you know exactly where she is right now?"

Flint frowned. There was something wrong. "I don't know. Alison told me she had a couple of different ideas for today, but she was going to wait to see what Marissa's mood was. What is going on?"

"I can't go into specifics while you're on a cell phone, but it is imperative that we get in touch with her ASAP. I talked to one of your intel agents, a woman named Firewall who is probably trying to find you right now."

Flint looked across the field, and he saw Firewall run out of Joe Headquarters. "Sean, I see her. I'll call you right back."

"Don't worry about me. Just talk to Alison and get her out of London."

Flint ran across the field to meet Firewall halfway. He tried to clamp down on his growing fear, "What happened?" he asked once he was within speaking distance.

"Nothing yet, but the CIA is afraid something big is brewing. MI6 reached out to them to say they had gotten credible intelligence that a Red Shadows sect was in London and planning an attack somewhere in Western Europe."

"Damn it," Flint said. He quickly dialed Alison's number and prayed that she answered.

* * *

Alison led Marissa out of the aquarium. Even though it had been low on her list of activities to do while in London she was glad that she had made the last-minute decision to go. Sure, they could have seen fish, sharks and sea lions at any of the many aquariums that the United States had to offer, but Marissa had grown bored of seeing some of the more standard London sights. Watching her toddler enthralled in the sea lion show had been worth the price of admission.

Once they were back outside, Alison turned on her phone. She didn't want it disturbing them as they made their way through the aquarium. As it connected to the local service, she frowned at the high number of missed calls and messages she had received.

She saw that almost all of them were from Flint and Sean. Knowing that there was probably a work emergency brewing which was going to mean an early return home, she decided to call Flint. At least he would try to sugar coat the bad news.

"Al? Can you get to a secure line?" Flint asked as soon as he answered.

It was an odd question that put Alison on alert. From her training, she scanned her surroundings. "No. I'm out in the open near Westminster Bridge. What's going on?"

Flint paused. "Okay. You two need to come back home. Do you remember my Aunt Rhonda? Rhonda Sue?"

Alison wracked her brains trying to remember the names of Flint's relatives. She knew there were quite a few of them, but the name was so unusual she should have remembered it. And then she remembered his initial comment and realized he was talking in code. The initials R.S. must mean the Red Shadows. "Of course I remember her. What's going on?"

"I don't know. The details are a little fuzzy, but Sean said she isn't doing well. They think she might have another attack in the next couple of days."

That was not good news. Sean must have gotten intelligence that a Red Shadows attack was imminent. Alison's grabbed Marissa's hand a little tighter. "Okay, we'll be home as soon as we can. Where is she?"

"I'll find out before you come home. But it's such a shame since she was so looking forward to her trip to Western Europe."

That sealed it. Maybe Flint was overreacting, but it had to be a severe enough threat for him to pass along what was probably classified information over an open channel to her. And with now two children to think about, Alison wasn't going to take any chances. "I'll get on the next flight available."

"Come to Phoenix. We can then go visit my aunt together."

Alison hung up. As calmly as possible she said to Marissa, "Let's go back to the hotel."

It was a short walk, and once they arrived, she began to pack. Alison had decided that instead of trying to change their ticket ahead of time, they were going to go right to the airport to try to get on one of the flights going to the US. "We go home?" Marissa asked as she jumped on the bed.

Still not wanting to frighten her daughter, Alison went with an easy lie. "Actually, Daddy missed up so much he asked us to fly to where he is."

Marissa was thrilled with the news. She babbled excitedly about the chance to see her father again. Alison grabbed her daughter's hand and the two went out to flag down a cab.

* * *

Flint waited as patiently as possible for their flight to land. It had been nearly twenty-four hours since he had talked to Alison. She had kept him posted throughout their ordeal getting out of London. Since they hadn't been sure exactly what the Red Shadows was planning or where they were going to attack, she had avoided any flights to the US that meant stopping in a different European city first. It meant they waited on stand-by for a few flights before they finally got on a plane to Chicago. There had been a four-hour layover there as well, before they got on their Phoenix flight.

Flint hoped that the quick exodus and travel ordeal wasn't too strenuous for Alison or the baby. He knew he wouldn't relax until he saw Alison and Marissa first hand. After what seemed like an eternity they announced that their flight had landed.

Flint pulled them both into his arms as soon as he saw them. They looked tired but that wasn't surprising based on the trip they had just taken. Both fell asleep as soon as they had gotten into the car. Marissa perked up once Flint brought them to their hotel room. Alison too did her best to stay awake.

With a yawn she asked, "Okay, so what was the threat? I haven't heard anything on the news about a new attack."

"Sean said the MI6 shared with the CIA that they had picked up on a sudden and unusual amount of chatter about three days ago. It was either the Red Shadows or a sect that was closely involved with them had some kind of device in the city. They were working on getting it out. The MI6 strongly believed that some sort of event was imminent."

"Wow, that does sound pretty serious. I'm surprised Sean let me come here instead of back to Langley."

Flint grinned sheepishly. "To be honest, that was what you were supposed to do. I exaggerated the truth about your flight difficulties. I did eventually admit that you were coming here, and I suggested that you could work with Firewall, Mainframe and the others. I think the Director still wants you back."

"Okay. Once I catch up on some sleep, I'll fly back."

Flint noticed that Marissa had already fallen back asleep. "Should we wake her for dinner?"

"No, let her sleep." Alison let out another yawn, and said, "I think I might join her."

The next morning Flint's alarm went off and he got up. Alison didn't even stir besides him. He briefly thought that was unusual, but he figured between the jet lag and the pregnancy, she was probably exhausted.

He took a shower and got dressed. Before he left, he kissed the top of her forehead. She seemed warmer than normal, but again he chalked it up to pregnancy hormones. Marissa too was still out cold in her bed. They apparently both still needed their sleep.

* * *

Alison woke from a series of strange nightmares, drenched in sweat. She felt awful. She was so hot, her head was pounding and the room was spinning. She wondered if she was just experiencing pregnancy symptoms, but she didn't remember anything this extreme with Marissa. It was a chore to just make it to the bathroom.

Once she exited she looked at the clock. She gasped when she saw the time. It was after ten. She stumbled her way to Marissa's bed on the other side of the room. It was only a few feet away but it seemed to take forever to get there. Even with jet lag and the time change, Marissa shouldn't still be asleep. Alison took one glance at her daughter and knew something was very wrong. She brought her hand to Marissa's forehead and felt that the girl was burning with fever.

She shook her. "Marissa, sweetie, please wake up."

All she got was a half hearted groan from her daughter. That was enough to spur her into action. She was dimly aware of cramping and pain that her own body was experiencing. She stumbled towards the table where she had placed her phone the night before and she dialed 911. Once the phone call was completed, Alison had just enough energy to unlock the hotel door before she passed out.

* * *

Flint watched as Falcon finished up his conversation with one of the MI6 members. After he hung up the phone, Falcon shook his head. "They have nothing. They raided the apartment, and it was cleared out. The bomb squad is going over it with a fine-tooth comb, but they're not expecting to find anything."

Flint's phone rang. At first he ignored it, but when he saw it was from one of the local medical centers, he answered it.

"Mr. Dashiell Faireborn?"

"Speaking."

"My name is Karen Richmond and I'm an ER nurse at County General. Your wife and daughter were admitted a short time ago. Sir, I don't mean to make you panic, but they are in pretty bad shape and I think you need to get here as soon as possible."

Flint thanked the nurse for the call and told her he was leaving for the hospital.

Once he hung up, Falcon looked at him with concern, "Something wrong?"

"Alison and Marissa are in the hospital. I have to go."

"Oh my God, of course. What happened?"

The simple question stopped Flint. He realized he didn't know if they had been in some kind of accident or, were suffering from a sudden debilitating illness. "I don't know. The nurse didn't say."

"Okay. I'll give you a ride."

Flint shook his head. "No, I have a car. Stay here and keep working on this. Tell Duke and Hawk that I'm at the hospital and will let them know what's going on as soon as I can."

Flint ignored Falcon's further protests and raced to the hospital. However, once he got there he met a wall of resistance. The nurse behind the desk of the emergency room was on the phone. He tried to tell his story, but she glared at him as she angrily tapped her finger on a clipboard. Flint saw it was a sign-in sheet. He stared her down until she hung up her phone. "I'm Dashiell Faireborn, and from what I understand my wife Alison and daughter Marissa was brought in a little while ago."

She met his glare. "If you enter your information on the clipboard I can look up your family members."

Flint begrudgingly did as he was told. He then handed her the clipboard. At first the nurse typed away at her computer with a face of passivity. But something triggered a much more concerned look. "Sir, can I ask you to wait here a moment while I get someone."

As she walked away, Flint couldn't help but have his thoughts turn to panic. On his drive over he contemplated every various scenario. At first he thought that something was wrong with the baby, but that wouldn't explain why Marissa too was being admitted.

Flint's phone rang, but he silenced it. He knew it was Joe Headquarters calling, but he couldn't deal with them. They had also called on his ride to the hospital but he had ignored it then as well. A hospital administrator approached, shook Flint's hand and introduced himself. He then asked Flint to follow him to his office. Once they were seated, he got down to business. "Mr. Faireborn, your wife and daughter were admitted earlier this morning showing signs of an advanced flu-like virus. I do have one question for you. Have they been on any international travel lately?"

Flint nodded. "They just returned from London yesterday."

The administrator's face took on an even graver look. "I was afraid of that. I'm not sure if you paid attention to the news of the last couple of hours, but there are initial reports of some sort of bio-event that had occurred in London."

Flint's eyes widened. That explained the calls from Headquarters. They too were probably just cluing into the fact that the Red Shadows attack wasn't of a traditional explosive nature, but one of bio-terrorism. However, Flint couldn't deal with the big picture, he was too concerned about his family. "So what about Alison and Marissa? What's going to happen to them?"

"Mr. Faireborn, I always try to stay optimistic. We are doing everything we can for them. We have them both on a vigorous course of antibiotics."

Flint swallowed against the lump forming in his throat. "My wife is pregnant."

The administrator consulted his file. "Yes, the doctors are aware of that. I'm sure they are tailoring their treatment in the best interest of both your wife and the fetus. Due to the nature of this sickness and the fact that we don't know the origin or the characteristics of it, we have them both in isolation."

"I understand the precautions, but I want to see them."

"Mr. Faireborn, I know you are probably worried sick, but I have to caution you against that. Once again, we don't know what we are dealing with, so we can't expose you to them."

"You're talking about my wife and daughter. They are the two people I love most in the world. And from reading between the lines it seems like the consensus is that they are not going to survive. Do you really think I care if I too catch this virus? And furthermore, if you're worried about exposure we all spent the night together in a hotel room. So I'm pretty sure I've been exposed to all of their germs already."

The administrator sat for a moment, and then he nodded. "Okay. But in the interest of public safety, once you enter their room, we will have to quarantine you."

"I'm fine with whatever you need to do."

"I will talk to the staff about bringing in a third bed to make you as comfortable as possible." He picked up the phone, and asked one of the doctors to report to his office. Once he did, he led Flint through the hospital to an area that had been cordoned off. Another doctor was standing there holding a hazard suit, which Flint refused. He could only imagine what Marissa's reaction would be if she woke up and saw him wearing that.

After a final word of caution that Flint only half listened to, he was escorted into their room. He had been expecting the worse, but he still wasn't prepared for what he saw. He had never seen Alison look so pale. And Marissa was hooked up to so many tubes and wires he could barely see her.

The doctor that came in with him made a few notations in his chart. "I know your wife looks bad, but she is showing signs of improvement," the doctor explained. He was speaking through a microphone through his suit, so it was difficult to understand him. "However, her extremely high fever caused her to miscarry."

Flint nodded as he wiped away a tear. He turned from Alison to Marissa. "What about my daughter?"

"It's hitting her hard, but she's fighting. We're doing all we can for her as well. We've been in constant contact with several hospitals in London that are also battling this. We're pooling all of our resources to figure out the best cause of action. I'm afraid there is not much more for you to do for them other than wait."

In a daze, Flint walked to one of the chairs that was situated between the two beds. He looked from his wife to his daughter and tried to comprehend all that had happened.


	15. Chapter 15

Alison woke up disoriented. It seemed like she had been asleep for a very long time. The dreams she had had made it hard to distinguish between what was real and what was not. She vaguely remembered feeling sick and speaking to a 911 operator.

That caused her to sit up as she realized that Marissa had been deathly ill. Flint appeared at her side. "Alison, thank God. I'm so happy to see you awake."

"Marissa?" she asked in a whisper.

Flint turned and looked towards a bed off to her side. "She's here." He went to say more, but his voice caught. That spurred her into action.

"Help me up. I want to see her."

"I don't think that's a good idea. You're still so weak."

"I don't care." He was right, she barely had energy to sit up. But she didn't care if Flint had to carry her, she wanted to see what was wrong with Marissa. Leaning heavily on him, she shuffled the few steps to her daughter's bed. Flint helped her into a chair that was next to it.

Alison's eyes filled with tears. She caressed Marissa's forehead and cheek. The girl didn't even react. "What's wrong with her, with me?"

"We believe you were hit with some kind of superflu engineered by the Red Shadows. The doctors are doing all they can, but they don't know how to cure it. It looks like it hits kids worse than adults."

"Which explains why I'm awake right now, but she isn't. How long has it been?"

"Three and a half days. She's been like this from the moment you were brought to the hospital."

The tears began to flow down Alison's cheeks. Her heart was breaking for her daughter, but she was afraid the news was only going to get worse. Her hand went to her abdomen. "The baby?" Her fears were confirmed by the look on Flint's face as he shook his head. "Oh God, Dash, I'm so sorry."

He dropped to his knees so he could hug her tight. The two then cried into each other's arms.

* * *

Nearly forty-eight hours later, Alison had almost recovered fully while Marissa was no better. Alison and Flint were keeping a vigil at Marissa's bedside when one of the many doctors that had been treating them walked in.

"There is something we can try," Doctor Hoffman announced. "It started out as a last gasp attempt at one of the hospitals in London that seemed to work. There are a lot of similar cases to yours over there. Many families were infected at the same time, and the adults recovered while their children remained sick. One doctor attempted a transfusion from the recovered parent into their child. Less than twenty-four hours later, the child also recovered."

"Then let's do it," Alison said.

Doctor Hoffman held up his hand. "I know you want to do everything you can to help your daughter, but we have to evaluate the risks. You're still extremely weak from the virus as well as the miscarriage. Performing the transfusion can cause you to relapse. And I'm not sure you'll survive a second round."

"Does she have to be the one?" Flint asked. "What if I give Marissa my blood? It's obvious I have some kind of immunity to the virus."

"You have to understand I don't have any firm answers to any of this. This is an extremely fluid situation. Plus, for medical research, we're talking about relatively small sample sizes. But from what I've seen coming out of England, a transfusion from a non-infected parent doesn't work. It looks like it has to come from the parent who beat the virus."

"It's a no-brainer to me. When can we do this?" Alison asked.

Flint turned towards her. "Alison, slow down. You know I want to save Marissa as much as you do. But I don't want you to needlessly throw away your own life to do it."

"I agree," Doctor Hoffman echoed. "Like I said, more data is coming in every minute. And before we can do anything, I need to take a blood sample to confirm that you do have enough antibodies to even be effective for Marissa. I can draw Dashiell's blood at the same time, and maybe his results will surprise me. So talk it over and I'll be back shortly with your results."

Alison waited until the doctor left the room before she turned towards Flint. "There's not much to discuss. If he comes back and says I'm her only chance of survival, I'm going to do it regardless of what it may mean for me."

"Al, all I ask is that you don't rush into this. Maybe the new antibiotic treatment will work."

Alison pointed to her daughter. "I hope that's the case, but I doubt it. Look at her. You can see that she's slowly fading away. I can't lose her, Dash."

Flint came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. "I know. Losing her scares the hell out of me. But what scares me even more is losing both of you."

"I know, Dash, but I have to do this. The Red Shadows took away our baby, and I'm not going to let them take Marissa too. I think this is what the old Scottish woman warned me about. She wanted me to be prepared to do whatever I could to save my family."

Flint abruptly stood up. "Damn it, Alison, don't tell me you're making a life and death decision based on a charlatan you once encountered years ago."

Before Alison could respond, a nurse entered to take their blood samples. It gave Alison the time think about Flint's outburst. She didn't blame him, she knew that their ordeal had weighed heavily on him. And he had always had a different interpretation of her encounter in Scotland.

But he hadn't been there with her. And what wasn't open to interpretation was her daughter's current condition. Alison needed to do whatever she could to save her daughter's life. Although, she also made the decision to not fight with Flint about their options until the doctor returned with the results.

They spent a long painful hour waiting on the doctor's return. "I'm sorry I took so long. I not only wanted to confirm the results, but I spent some time chatting with London. I'm afraid nothing has changed, and your blood work confirms that. Mrs. Faireborn, you remain the prime candidate for the transfusion. Mr. Faireborn, I'm afraid you just don't have the supply of antibodies to do any good for Marissa. The other positive news is that based on your very low levels of the virus in your system, we're releasing your quarantine."

"But I can help her?" Alison asked.

"Yes. Right now Marissa is stable, so my recommendation is to wait a few hours and see if the new regiment takes effect. If it doesn't we many need to give serious thought to the transfusion."

Once again the doctor left. "So that was good news," Alison commented.

It wasn't to Flint. However, he was happy to hear they were finally going to let him leave. Not that he wanted to spend time apart away from Marissa and Alison at that moment, but he had been itching to get back to Joe HQ. He wanted to do his own research, talk to Doc and Lifeline, and maybe come up with a different course of action. He told Alison his plans.

"I think that's a good idea. Like the doctor said, Marissa's stable. If that changes, I'll call you."

He gave her and Marissa a kiss before he left. He drove out of the hospital optimistic, but that faded rapidly once he returned to HQ. His first stop was the medical ward, where Doc didn't have any better information for him.

Flint walked out unsure what to do next. Originally he had wanted to return to HQ and throw himself into his work for a couple of hours. But all he could think about was Alison and Marissa and his worry for them, so he decided the best course of action was to return to the hospital.

On the way back, Flint encountered a traffic jam. As he fought his way to the exit ramp, a jackass in a convertible cut him off. It was the proverbial straw. He let out a litany of curses and debated chasing the driver down to teach him a lesson. As he imagined pummeling the driver on the side of the freeway, he realized that he was overstressed.

Without further incident, he returned to the hospital and parked in the garage. He turned the car off, but he just sat there. He couldn't summon the energy or desire to get out of the car. He knew that in the very near future he was going to be faced with the decision of choosing his daughter's life or his wife's. And he couldn't make that choice. The idea of losing either one of them devastated him, so how could he pick one over the other?

He spent a few more moments collecting his thoughts , and then he finally exited his car. He made his way through the hospital to Alison and Marissa's room, but he was stopped by a guard before he got there. "No, it's okay. I've been cleared to see them," Flint explained as he pulled out his wallet to flash his ID.

Melanie, the nurse he had gotten very familiar with, came running over. "George, thank you but I'll handle this." She waved off the guard and then turned her attention to Flint. "I'm sorry about that, but no one is allowed in their room until the procedure is completed."

"What procedure?" Flint asked.

Melanie sighed. "Marissa took a turn for the worse. Her fever spiked, and she started seizing, so your wife insisted that they do the transfusion."

"What? Why didn't anyone call me?"

"It happened so fast, that your wife didn't have a chance to talk to you. But she asked us to call you, which we did a few minutes ago, but you didn't answer."

Flint looked at his phone, and saw that he did have a new voicemail. They must have called while he was having his pity party in the parking garage where he had no service. Melanie continued, "They only started a little while ago. If you want to wait, you can have a seat in the lounge, or maybe the chapel, and I'll come get you when they're done."

Flint bristled at the idea of going to the chapel. People only went there when they were convinced they were going to lose a loved one. He wasn't prepared to concede that fact, so he decided to go to the family lounge on the floor.

However, after a few minutes Flint knew it wasn't going to work. A large, boisterous family had gathered there, and he couldn't handle listening to their laughter and yells. So he left. He wandered around the hospital, looking for a place to go. He thought about the café, but he had no appetite. So, as if being pulled by fate, he ended up in the chapel.

Thankfully, it was empty. He sat in a pew about halfway up the aisle. He still resisted the idea of focusing too hard on the perilous situation playing out on the third floor, or to pray for a positive outcome. Much to the chagrin of his mother, he never fully embraced the idea of religion. If push came to shove he would admit to believing in a higher power, but after everything he had seen in his Army and Joe career the idea of a puppet master type God was a little hard to swallow.

The door to the chapel opened and Flint sighed in frustration at the loss of his solitude. Especially when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Flint," Scarlett said as she took a seat next to him. "I just spoke to the doctor who told me they are going ahead with the transfusion." Flint just nodded so she continued. "I talked to Doc who's been in nonstop communication with Lifeline in London. They agree that this is Marissa's best chance, and there should be little risk to Alison."

"I don't think they know the whole story," Flint said. "Alison suffered a miscarriage because of the virus."

Scarlett gasped. "Flint, I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

"No one did," Flint replied quietly. "We didn't tell anyone yet, just in case," _something went wrong,_ he wanted to say but couldn't as he got choked up on the words.

Scarlett wrapped her arms around him, and Flint gave into his grief. Once he composed himself again he pulled away and apologized for his actions.

"Flint, stop. You're allowed to be human."

Flint nodded but didn't reply. He sat quietly for a few minutes, but then the silence started to get to him. "Talk to me, Red. What's the latest news?"

"Well, we think we finally figured out what the Red Shadows message was with the Memorial Day weekend attacks. I think the blackout in Hawaii was only supposed to represent how easy it was to trigger the Northeast blackout. The bomb in the Bank of America building wasn't an omen to an attack in Atlanta, or against the banking institutes. The CDC has a foundation that has office space in the building. Which was their way of saying the next attack was going to be biological. And we believe that the bomb in Boston was never supposed to detonate. It was representing a future attack, not on the Fourth of July but against the British. I know Vaughn claims he is not calling the shots, but somehow he passed on his vendetta against his former homeland to his team."

Flint nodded. He wanted to share this news with Alison, to talk about how some of her hunches were correct. But then her remembered that he couldn't talk to her. And that there was the very real possibility that he would never be able to discuss this with her. He had to clamp down on his rising despair.

The door to the chapel opened. "Mr. Faireborn, the procedure is over. Would you like to see your wife and daughter?"

Flint jumped to his feet. He didn't need to be asked twice.

* * *

Flint stood from the hospital room chair he had been sitting in for the last several hours. He knew he should take a walk, get some fresh air, or at least something to eat or drink. But he couldn't leave. A few hours earlier, after the nurse had led him from the chapel back to Alison and Marissa's bedside, one of the doctors had paid him a visit. He had said that the transfusion had gone well, and that they should see the results within a short time. Scarlett stayed by his side for the first couple of hours, but then she needed to return to HQ.

At first Flint was optimistic that his long nightmare was going to be over. But as first the minutes and then the hours ticked away he began to grow more and more concerned. The doctors that had come to check on Alison and Marissa had continued to try and console him with as much positive news as they could muster, but Flint knew it was most likely empty words.

He first went to Alison's bedside. He once again pushed one of her curls out of her eyes. She had always complained about how unruly her hair was. He hoped and prayed that he would hear her complaints once again. Flint heard a faint groan come from behind him. He quickly turned towards Marissa.

He noticed immediately that the color had returned to her face and she had lost the sickly pale look that she had had the last several days. Marissa groaned again and she began to slowly shake her head back and forth. Flint jumped for the nurse's call button and frantically pushed the alert button. He had been told to report any change of their condition.

Two of the nurses and one of the doctors responded within moments. One nurse checked the machines, while the other took her vital signs. The doctor grabbed her free hand and said, "Marissa can you hear me?"

Marissa's eyes blinked open and let out a cry for her mother. The doctor turned to Flint and with a nod gave him permission to approach. "Marissa, sweetie, it's Daddy."

Marissa tried to reach her arms out to him, but one was still being held down by the nurse. Flint gave her an awkward hug. "I'm here, baby girl. You've been sick, but you're okay now."

Marissa smiled at him and then fell back asleep. Flint looked at the doctor in panic. The doctor placed a hand on his shoulder. "Mr. Faireborn, don't worry, this is a normal reaction by her body. She's been fighting off the infection and she needs her rest. We're going to draw some blood to confirm, but based on what I see here, she's beaten the virus."

Flint said a silent prayer of thanks. He turned towards Alison and hoped that she too would show the same signs of recovery, but she seemed to be still deep in her coma. Reading his thoughts, the doctor said he was going to check on Alison. He spent a few minutes examining and with a sad nod of his head he told Flint there was no change. "But don't get discouraged. She isn't any worse, so I think she just needs a little longer to recover."

The doctor then told Flint that he should take a break from his vigil since both Marissa and Alison would probably be asleep for the next several hours. With a nod, Flint followed him out of the room. He got in the elevator and went down to the lobby. He had intended to do as the doctor said, to go home for a shower and a nap, but as he looked out into the dark parking lot past the hospital entrance, he realized he didn't even have a proper home to go to. He assumed the hotel room he had checked into when Alison and Marissa had flown back from London was still technically his, but he had no desire to go there. He had even less desire to drive to GI Joe HQ and freshen up in the room he had been temporarily assigned to.

Instead, he decided to grab a meal at the cafeteria down the hall. Not finding much that seemed appetizing, he settled on a sandwich, chips and drinks that he brought back to the room. Still not having much of an appetite, he placed the items on one of the tables. He figured the nurses wouldn't mind if he took a quick shower.

When he walked out he was met with one of the most glorious sights he had experienced since becoming a father. Marissa, in her oversized hospital gown, had made her way to the table and chair a few feet from her bed. She was seated, eagerly eating the chips he had brought back. She flashed him a smile. "I hungry Daddy."

Flint grinned. And for the first time in days he felt a glimmer of hope for the future.


	16. Chapter 16

Marissa's health rapidly improved and by the third morning after she had woken up, she was given the okay to go home. Flint was happy that she recovered enough to leave the hospital, but he was now presented with two more problems. He didn't have a home to go to in Arizona, and he hated the idea of leaving Alison's side.

The solution to the first problem came a short time after he had gotten off the phone with the front desk of the hotel they had been staying at. They had informed him that they had been forced to quarantine the building. The overly cheerful woman on the phone told him they were more than welcome to return now that the quarantine was lifted, but Flint had gotten the impression she only offered it for the sake of the hotel chain's public image.

Before Flint had a chance to move on to another hotel, his phone rang. He recognized it as one of the numbers from HQ. Assuming it was work related he answered the phone, "Flint here."

"Flint it's, Dusty. Scarlett's been keeping us up to date on what's happening to Alison and Marissa, and I'm so happy to hear Marissa is feeling better." After Flint expressed his thanks, Dusty continued. "I'm calling because Scarlett mentioned that you're going to need a place to stay, and I want to let you know that I have an apartment out in town that's available. It's a two bedroom, which is too big for me, but should be plenty of room for you."

Flint was speechless, "Rudat, thank you, it means a lot to me, to us, but I can't kick you out of your apartment."

"It's really no trouble. I barely spend any time there as it is. If I'm not here, I'm spending the night at my mom's to look after her. So please, it's yours as long as you need it."

Lacking a better option, Flint agreed to the offer. Dusty continued, "The cleaning lady was just there, so it's ready whenever you are."

Flint thanked Dusty one final time and then hung up. Flint looked towards Marissa, who for the moment was quietly watching the PBS channel. But the way she was bouncing up and down, he could tell that she was anxious to get up and move around. He could take her for another walk around the hospital floor, but she needed fresh air and multiple rooms to move around in. Flint then turned towards Alison, who was still comatose. He hated leaving her, but he knew that she would want him to focus on giving Marissa what she needed and not be cooped up in the hospital room waiting for her to wake up.

He rang for the nurse, and when she arrived he told her he was ready to check Marissa out. The nurse eagerly helped him pack up. There had been several donations that had come in for the victims of the bio-attack. Marissa had been given numerous books, toys and stuffed animals, as well as a few outfits.

Once they were ready, Flint turned towards Alison. "I just need a minute to say goodbye. To tell her that I'll be back in a few hours," he added quickly.

The nurse put her hand on his shoulder. "Take your time. Marissa, let's go say goodbye to the other nurses behind the desk."

Flint took a seat on the bed next to his wife. He grabbed her hand. "I'm not sure if you heard all that's been happening, but Marissa has been given the green light to go home. You did it, babe, you saved her."

Flint had to take a break and swallow against the lump in his throat. "They say that you should wake up any moment now. I want to be here for that, but it's not fair to Marissa to be cooped up here. Dusty was nice enough to lend us his apartment, so I'm going to take her there. I'll be back later." Flint first kissed Alison's hand and then her forehead.

Flint took another moment to compose himself before he joined Marissa at the nurses' desk. The smile on her face was enough to cheer him up. He picked up her bag and grabbed her hand and led her out of the hospital. The nurses and other medical staff gave them a standing ovation as they left. Flint again had to clamp down on his emotions.

Dusty's apartment complex was a short drive from the hospital. As Flint pulled through the main gate, and past the clubhouse, Marissa let out a gasp. "They have a pool! We go swim?"

Flint wasn't sure if she was well enough to do that. "Let me check with your doctor first."

They parked in front of Dusty's building, and then unlocked the door to his apartment. Flint was impressed as it was a very nice place. Marissa continued to hound him about going to the pool, so he pulled out Marissa's paperwork to find the number of the doctor's office that the hospital had given him for any questions and follow-up care.

Flint assumed he was just going to speak to the receptionist of duty, but as soon as he explained who he was he was transferred to one of the doctors on staff. Flint spent the next few minutes reviewing Marissa's history, and telling the doctor her current level of health.

"She does sound like she is completely recovered. Can you make an appointment to bring her by my office tomorrow so I can perform a physical to confirm? In the meantime, I say enjoy your afternoon together. The pool will be fine, just watch her energy level. Don't overdo it. The minute she seems like she's getting tired bring her home for a nap. Make sure she eats well, gets plenty of fluids and a good night's sleep."

After Flint made the appointment for the next morning, he told Marissa they could go to the pool. "But first, we need to go to the store to get us some bathing suits."

Marissa was excited for the impromptu shopping trip. Flint took her to the local mall, and as they walked from store to store, and Marissa picked out one item after another, he knew he was spoiling the child. But he was so happy that she was healthy again, that he didn't care. They had lunch before they left and then returned to the apartment complex.

They spent more than an hour at the pool and then returned to the apartment, where the two of them fell fast asleep. Flint woke up some time later to the sound of a knock at the door.

He groggily went to the front door and once he saw it was Scarlett, he invited her in. She took a look at the bags piled up in the living room. "Looks like you two had a good day."

"It really was," Flint said and he looked at his watch. It was late in the afternoon. "Once Marissa wakes up, I think I'm going to take her to the hospital to see Alison. Do you want to come?"

"I'd love to," Scarlett said.

They made small talk for a few minutes until Marissa came walking out of the bedroom. She saw Scarlett and ran towards her, "Aunt Shana!"

Scarlett lifted Marissa into her arms. "Hello, Miss M."

Flint rubbed his daughter's back. "Are you hungry? Do you want a snack?"

Marissa nodded, and the three of them went into the kitchen to help her pick out what she wanted to eat. They set her up at the table. "Once you're done we can visit Mommy in the hospital."

The change in Marissa's demeanor was sudden and drastic. She threw the bag of crackers. "No! I no want to go to hospital!"

Flint was shocked by the outburst. "But, sweetie don't you want to go see Mommy?"

"No!" Marissa shrieked again. She ran from the table to her room.

Flint looked at Scarlett in exasperation. She patted his arm. "Don't take it personal, and don't hold it against her. The hospital was probably a very scary place for her."

"I understand that. But I thought she would still want to see her mother."

"I'm sure she does, but not in her current condition. If you want to go visit Alison, I'll stay with her."

"I appreciate the offer, but shouldn't I make her go? What if," Flint hesitated as he was reluctant to voice his deepest fears. With a sigh he continued, "What if she never wakes up?"

"You can't think like that. Her chances of recovery are still very high."

"Her odds are coming from doctors that admit at every moment that they don't what they are dealing with. So shouldn't I bring Marissa to see her mother while she still can?"

Scarlett grabbed his hand. "My mother died when I was only a little older than Marissa. She too was in the hospital, and I remember my Dad taking me and my brothers to see her right before she died. I can't remember what she looked like. I remember my brothers afterwards talking about how different she had looked, but I honestly think I had blocked it from my mind. What I do remember is a couple of the really good times we had together and I think that is more important."

"You're right. She should stay here. She had a good day, so why upset her."

Flint rose from the table, went to the bedroom Marissa had claimed as her own, and told the still pouting toddler that she could stay home with Scarlett. Marissa cheered up immediately and went back into the dining room.

Satisfied that his daughter was going to be well cared for, Flint returned to the hospital. As the elevator opened to Alison's floor, Marissa's nurse from earlier called his name. "I was just getting ready to call you."

Flint was filled with dread. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's good news. Your wife's vitals have been getting stronger all afternoon. She hasn't woken up yet, but the doctors think it's going to happen at any moment."

Flint hurried to Alison's room. He was at first dismayed to see that she looked exactly the same as when he had left her hours before. But then as he studied her features, he realized that her cheeks did have more color in them, and her breathing seemed more regular. He grabbed her hand. "Al, I'm back. I have a feeling you were waiting for me to wake up, so I'm here now."

Flint hoped that his words would have the magic effect and Alison's eyes would finally open. But unfortunately it was not to be. As the minutes ticked by, Flint settled in for a longer wait.

There was a knock on the door and Doc walked in. Flint rose to his feet and shook Doc's hand. "Thanks for coming by. Are you checking in on the patient?"

"Yes. I've developed a good rapport with the staff here, and they told me that Alison took a turn for the better." Doc picked up her chart and nodded as he read through the notations. "They're right. Pulse rate and oxygen are back in the normal range." He looked up at Flint. "She should wake up at any moment."

"That's what they told me," Flint said. "But it's still an excruciating wait."

"I know. And you were never the calmest and most patient when Alison's well-being was concerned."

Flint rose his hand. "I promise I have been on my very best behavior. I think I have only flipped out on the nurses once or twice."

Doc smiled. "Do you mind if I join you for a little while?"

"I'd love it. Pull up a chair."

Doc settled in on the opposite side of Alison's bed. "How's Marissa?"

"She's doing really well. I made a follow-up appointment for tomorrow morning with one of the infectious disease specialists that the hospital recommended. I took her to the mall and then to the pool this afternoon. I think we both needed it."

"I bet you did. I'm happy to hear that she made a full recovery. The biggest thing doctors fear is a new disease with no known cures. Luckily, from the early numbers we don't think this was supposed to be a high fatality epidemic, but it has been crippling."

Flint looked at Alison and thought about her lost pregnancy. "Any loss is too much."

"Amen to that."

The two men sat quietly for a few moments until Flint asked for an update on Lifeline.

"He's finishing up his research and should be returning to the states in the next couple of days. I think his next stop is Atlanta to work with the CDC on a cure and vaccine."

"Isn't that a bit like closing the barn door after the cows have escaped?"

Doc smiled. "Maybe. But we know so little about this disease. It doesn't appear to be contagious, but what if there is a long incubation period for secondary contact? And what if the Red Shadows decide to hit another major city?"

As likely as that scenario was, Flint didn't want to consider the possibility. He hated the idea of other families suffering like his was. "Let's hope the Joes can get a bead on their location before that happens."

Flint was going to expand on his thoughts, but a groan from the bed stopped any further conversation. Flint looked towards Doc and based on the way the doctor was studying Alison, Flint assumed he had heard the noise as well.

Another groan, louder this time, escaped from Alison's lips. Flint grabbed her hand. "Babe, come on, you can do this. Open your eyes."

This time, Alison listened to him. Her eyelids fluttered and he was finally able to see the green eyes that he loved so much. She blinked a few times and then her head snapped to the left, towards Marissa's empty bed. She then looked back at Flint, squeezed his hand and mouthed the word, "Marissa?"

"She's fine. The transfusion worked. She's home with Scarlett, happy and healthy as can be."

With a sigh and a smile, Alison's head relaxed against the pillow. Doc rose from his chair. "I'm going to get her doctor."

While waiting for the doctor to arrive, Flint recapped his and Marissa's day. He wasn't sure how much Alison was comprehending, but every so often she would nod her head and smile. She fell back asleep right before the doctor walked into the room. Flint expressed his concerns to the doctor who waved him off. "Just like your daughter, she probably needs her rest. Her vitals are very strong, and the fact that she woke up, even for a short time is extremely encouraging."

Flint tried to share the doctor's optimism, but until Alison was up and walking around, he would still be worried about her. He called Scarlett to update her on the breakthrough. Scarlett was happy to hear the news and told him to take as much time as he needed since she and Marissa were doing fine.

Flint appreciated the offer, but he only stayed by Alison's bedside for an additional hour. He hated leaving her, but Scarlett had a job to do, and it wouldn't be fair to ask her to stay overnight with Marissa. Plus, Flint wanted to go home to perform Marissa's pre-bedtime ritual.

He kissed Alison's head, and told the night nurse on duty that if she woke up again to tell her that he would return in the early morning. He drove back to the apartment and found Marissa and Scarlett sitting together on the couch, engrossed in a movie. Any bad feelings Marissa had from earlier were gone as she jumped off the couch and ran into his arms with a happy shout of his name.

"I wasn't expecting you this soon," Scarlett said.

"I wanted to be home to tuck her in," Flint said. He kissed the top of Marissa's head and then he exaggeratedly wrinkled his nose. "Somebody smells like a pool. It's definitely bath time. Go pick out your pajamas."

"Give me a hug," Scarlett said. "I'm going to go."

"Don't run out on my account," Flint said

"I want to go by the hospital and see Alison."

"Okay, thanks. Let me know if she wakes again."

Scarlett called after Marissa had fallen asleep to say that Alison hadn't woken up while she had been there. Flint went to bed trying not to dwell on his concern. His exhaustion overruled his worry, and he fell asleep quickly.

He woke with a start to the ringing of his phone. When he saw it was the hospital, fear gripped his heart, but the nurse quickly allayed his fears. She told him that Alison had woken up and was asking for him.

Marissa was already awake, and he got her dressed quickly. This time she didn't fight him on going to the hospital. He told her that her mother too was awake and really wanted to see her. When they arrived at the hospital he hoped that was still the case.

She was asleep when they walked in, but it was only a light doze as her eyes snapped open when Marissa called her name. Marissa jumped into her mother's bed. "Be careful, sweetie," Flint cautioned.

"She's fine," Alison said with a whisper. She hugged Marissa tight. "Mommy is so happy to see you."

"Our new house has a pool" Marissa said excitedly.

Alison shot Flint a questioning look, and it was a moment of normalcy that Flint nearly lost control of his emotions. "Dusty made a very generous offer to let us stay as his place as long as we needed it." Flint realized after he said it that he had no idea how long that would be. But as he had been doing the last few days, he decided to take each day one at a time.

They chatted for a few minutes, until Flint noticed that Alison was struggling to stay awake. She dozed off during a lull in the conversation and Flint reached for Marissa. "We should let Mommy go back to sleep."

Marissa's face took on a look that Flint recognized as pre-meltdown. But in a surprising show of maturity for a two-year old, she nodded instead of bursting into tears. "Okay."

Flint helped Marissa down, and Alison's eyes opened again. She grabbed his hand and in a whisper said, "I'm sorry, I'm just so tired."

"Don't apologize, you need your rest. And I have to take Marissa to the doctor."

That got Alison's attention. Her eyes shot open. "Is she okay?"

"Yes. This is just a follow-up visit."

Alison's head nodded. "Let me know what he says."

The waiting room was empty when Flint and Marissa arrived. She was called back a few minutes later where a nurse took her height, weight and blood pressure. The doctor walked in shortly after the nurse walked out. He grabbed Marissa's chart. "BP is good, and it looks like she's starting to gain back the couple of pounds she lost while she was under."

He began to give Marissa an examination. "How's she feeling?"

"Pretty good. We went to the mall and to the pool yesterday."

"That's good. Keep her active. Is she sleeping okay?"

"All night," Flint confirmed.

The doctor finished checking Marissa out. "She seems completely healthy."

"Seems?" Flint asked.

"I know. That's one of those pesky doctor speak words. Unfortunately, since this a virus we know very little about, we're still in reactive mode. We haven't heard about anyone slipping into a relapse once they have recovered from the initial infection, but it's early. So keep an eye on her. Anything out of the ordinary, no matter how minor, give us a call. I want to err on the side of caution here."

The doctor helped Marissa down from the table. He opened the door and called for the nurse. "We give out prizes to all of our best patients. Miss Kathy will help you pick out something from our prize box."

Once Marissa left, the doctor closed the door behind him. "Mr. Faireborn, I want to talk to you about your wife."

Flint nodded. "We came here from the hospital. I noticed she is a lot more run down than Marissa was at this point."

"I too checked in on her early this morning. Her fatigue may be a normal part of her healing process. Marissa was back on her feet pretty quick, but that could be due to her age. Children do bounce back quicker that adults. But the transfusion also could be playing a part. As well as the miscarriage. Your wife's body has gone through a lot the last couple of weeks."

"Is she going to get better?"

"The fact that she's awake every now and then and talking is a good sign. But again, I don't know what the future brings. So I want to warn you that you need to be prepared for a new normal."

"What does that mean?" Flint asked, trying to keep the panic from his voice.

"She may make a full recovery, but it could take some time. From what I read in her chart history is that she works for the CIA and you live in DC?"

"That's correct."

"I think eventually she will be well enough to travel back to your home, but again, that could take some time. I think it's going to be an even longer time before she's well enough to return to work. I think you may need to give some thought to an extended leave of absence."

Flint could only nod as he was trying to comprehend the implications. The doctor continued. "And finally, I also have to give my strong recommendation to hold off on any future children. As time goes on, she may regain her health and then we can revisit the topic. But until then I'm afraid that another pregnancy may be life threatening."

Flint's face must have betrayed his thoughts, because the doctor patted him on the shoulder. "I know this is a lot to take in, and I can only imagine what you've gone through the last couple of weeks. As I told you there are a lot of unknowns, and your wife may surprise us. She may be completely recovered in a short period of time, and all of my precautions and warnings would be for naught. But I believe in preparing for the worst while hoping for the best."

Flint thanked the doctor for his time. He collected Marissa and brought her to the car. He wanted to get a hold of his thoughts before he returned to the hospital but he was at a loss as to what to do. He didn't want to go to the apartment, because he was afraid that he wouldn't get Marissa to go back to the hospital for a second time. He drove aimlessly until he spotted a kiddie play place and Flint figured it was the perfect place to spend a couple of hours.

Marissa was thrilled with his choice, and eagerly ran off to climb in the jungle gym. Flint kept a close eye on her while he ordered a coffee and took a seat at one of the booths near the jungle gym. He tried to focus on the positive aspects. Marissa was fine, and Alison was out of the woods. Alison wasn't going to be happy with a forced leave of absence, but it would be a minor price to pay to recover her health.

He then wondered where they would spend her recuperation time. There didn't seem to be much point in returning to DC if Alison couldn't work at Langley. It had never felt like home to Flint, so he had no strong ties there. Plus, he could do more for the Joe team in Arizona.

Flint settled deeper into the booth. He felt a bit better. The news about future children was devastating, but as the doctor admitted several times, he didn't know for sure. Alison could surprise them all. And if she didn't Flint was still blessed that he had his wife and daughter back in his life.

Flint decided to make a couple of phone calls. The first was to Headquarters. Duke told him that everything was status quo, and to not worry about the Joe team. Flint had a feeling that wasn't entirely the truth, as he imagined that the Joes were busy responding to the Red Shadows, but he appreciated Duke giving him the opportunity to focus on his family.

His next call was to his parents. Flint had spoken to them briefly after Marissa had woken up, and he wanted to let them know that not only had he brought Marissa home, but that Alison was awake as well. He didn't want to worry them with the doctor's gloom and doom prognosis so he kept the conversation light. They offered to come help him if he needed it, but he told them he was fine for the time being.

After he hung up the phone he realized he actually believed what he had said.


	17. Chapter 17

Alison woke up to the sun shining in her face. She was momentarily disoriented. Even though she had been home from the hospital for more than a week she still hadn't gotten used to Dusty's bedroom being hers.

Technically, it still wasn't hers, as they were only borrowing the living space. At some point she needed to make a decision regarding a more permanent place of residence, but today was not that day. She rolled over and wrapped her arms around her husband. Flint had told her the night before that he needed to go into Joe HQ in the afternoon, but he promised that he would be home for most of the morning.

She wanted to take advantage of that fact. Her hand began to rub up and down his chest. He brought his hand over hers to stop it. He kissed the top of her head. "Are you awake? I'll make breakfast."

Before she could answer he got out of bed. As he threw on a pair of sweatpants she said, "What's the hurry? I thought we could have a more leisurely morning in bed."

"That sounds nice, but I think Marissa is awake. I'll go check on her."

Flint closed the door behind him. Alison rolled over with a sigh. She wondered if her hearing had been affected by her illness, because she couldn't hear Marissa. Even if the toddler was awake, she was pretty good about entertaining herself for a short time in the morning. While she admired Flint's dedication to their daughter she wondered if he was using her as an excuse to avoid alone time with Alison.

Alison threw the covers back and stood up. She had to stop as a wave of lightheadedness overtook her. She closed her eyes, breathed deeply, and the feeling passed. It didn't help her mood, so she decided to take a shower before she joined her family.

Once she was dressed, she walked into the kitchen and she couldn't help but smile. Marissa was standing on one of the dining room chairs, helping her father cook. Based on the plate of misshapen pancakes to her side, she had done the majority of the work.

"These look delicious!" she said. She gave Marissa a kiss and then helped her down from the chair.

"You're a good sport," Flint whispered. "But I'm pretty sure they are going to taste a lot better than they look. Coffee's ready."

"Perfect," she replied. She poured herself a cup while once again contemplating Flint's 'Jekyll and Hide' behavior. One minute he was blowing her off and doing his best to get away from her company, and the next he was being sweet and making her breakfast.

The latter was explained after they had finished breakfast, and Flint announced that he needed to head into HQ a little earlier than expected. At first Alison stewed while he showered and dressed, but she decided to confront him before he left for the day.

After making sure that Marissa was settled, she walked into their bedroom and closed the door.

"Before you go to work, I want to talk to you."

"Okay."

Alison hesitated a moment to get her thoughts in order. "Look, Dash, I know this isn't what you signed up for. I wouldn't blame you, and in fact I'm giving you my blessing if you're having second thoughts about our marriage and want to move on."

Flint stayed quiet for a moment. Then he asked, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"This life sentence I've been given. I know this isn't what you wanted. You wanted a healthy wife and a few kids, and I," Alison paused and swallowed hard, "can't give you that anymore."

"Jesus, Al, the only reason why you can't is because you sacrificed your health to save our daughter. I'd never be able to thank you enough or repay you for that."

"I appreciate that you think it was a noble gesture on my part. But the truth is that it was the least I could do. If it wasn't for me, she never would have been sick. If I didn't insist on going to London, she would have been fine, and we would have been preparing for the birth of our second child. Instead you're stuck with a sick and infertile wife that you're going to spend the rest of my life taking care of."

"Alison, please tell me you don't really believe that. You can't blame yourself. You deciding to go to London did not lead to this. It was a cruel trick of faith. Think about it. If one day I decided to take Marissa to the mall, and we were hit by a drunk driver on the way there, would you blame me for killing her?"

"No, of course not. But this is different. I keep replaying everything that I could have done differently. I should have tried to get out of London sooner."

Flint grabbed her hands. "First of all, from what we learned, the Red Shadows attack happened long before I warned you to leave. And secondly, that trip is one of Marissa's greatest memories. During the time I was sitting by your bedside, I realized I never had the chance to go through the photos you had taken. Marissa was with me, and she crawled in my lap to see the photos as well. In her way, she told me about the trip you two had. And you should have seen the smile on her face."

"If that's true, if you really don't blame me for all of this, then why haven't you touched me since I've been home?"

"Oh, Al, I'm sorry. I never meant for you to get the wrong impression. You're right, I have been avoiding being intimate. Before we left the hospital, your doctor warned me about how weak you were. He said anything majorly taxing on your body could kill you, and that included a pregnancy."

"Dash, there are methods to prevent that."

"I know. But it's not foolproof. And, thinking you might accidentally kill your wife after having sex is a bit of a killjoy."

Alison's shoulders slumped. "And that's exactly my point. I don't want you to treat me like a fragile invalid that's going to break if touched."

Flint wrapped his arms around her. "I'm sorry if I made you feel that way. I came so close to losing you and Marissa, that I can't help but be overly cautious. But I promise, I'll work on that."

"Thank you," Alison said. With a smile she changed the subject. "I have a conference call with Stuart and Sean later this morning."

"Is it to discuss your future with the CIA?"

"I'm sure that will come up, but the main reason is that they want to pick my brain about our time in London. I don't know how beneficial that is going to be."

"You never know. Maybe something they say will trigger a memory."

"Which will crack the case wide open against the Red Shadows? I doubt it. But it will be nice to do something useful with my time."

Flint kissed her again. "You taking the time to recuperate is the most important thing you could be doing right now."

Alison nodded and flashed him a smile she didn't entirely feel. She knew he was right, but she still couldn't help but feel like she was just wasting her time.

Flint left, and Alison devoted her time to her work. Sean sent her a few files to read, and it was a nice distraction while waiting for the call. She finished her reading with about a half hour to spare. Marissa was starting to get restless, so Alison suggested that they walk to the small pond across the street from the apartment to feed the ducks.

It was a brutally hot August day, and Alison was happy they had the excuse of her upcoming call to keep the visit short. She tried to convince herself that her labored breathing was due to the oppressive heat, and not because of her failing health.

"How are you feeling?" Sean asked once she called into the conference number.

"I'm okay," Alison answered. "Unfortunately I seem to be only taking baby steps towards complete recovery."

"Well any steps are better than none," Stuart added. "Don't worry about your position here. It'll be here when you are ready to return."

"Thank you, I appreciate that."

The call transitioned to work matters. As Alison predicted, she didn't feel like she contributed anything earth shattering to the conversation, but she did enjoy the opportunity to focus on professional matters.

Unfortunately, though, it only lasted a short time. Marissa came over to where she was seated at the dining room table and began to repeat the word, "pool." Alison did her best to quiet her daughter, but Marissa was not going to be deterred.

Sean was the first one to hear her. "Sounds like someone wants to go swimming."

"Yeah, it's her new favorite activity. And if she doesn't get her way, the terrible twos rear their ugly head."

"I think we have everything we need, so we're going to let you go."

Alison hung up the phone with a frustrated growl. Marissa, sensing the change in her mother's mood, climbed into her lap and settled against her chest. She rubbed her small chubby hand against Alison's cheek. As soon as Alison smiled, Marissa asked as sweetly as possible, "Pool?"

Alison couldn't help but laugh. "Okay. Let's get your bathing suit."

Alison knew her life had gotten slightly derailed, but she still had a lot to be thankful for.

* * *

"Mrs. Faireborn?"

Alison shook herself out of the trance she must have fallen into. Her thoughts had run wild ever since the doctor announced his diagnosis. "I'm sorry, I spaced out. What did you say?"

"I asked you if you had any other questions."

 _Sure I do. I did everything you recommended. I quit my job, got a permanent place in Arizona and spent the last nine months resting and taking care of myself, and you just told me it was for nothing? How is that fair?_

She shook her head as she realized that was a question her doctor couldn't answer. Instead she asked a less selfish one. "But Marissa is really okay?"

"I had the lab triple check her results. Whereas your blood work shows a high level of the virus in your system, hers is non-existent."

"Thank God for that," Alison said.

"And you. The consensus is the antibodies that you transferred to her helped her body eradicate the disease. Mrs. Faireborn, I know I gave you some devastating news, but please do not give up hope. There are dozens of scientists and doctors that are working diligently on finding a cure."

Alison nodded. She had a feeling that she was going to be long gone before that point, but she wasn't going to voice her negativity to the doctor. "Thank you for your time."

"I want to see you back in four weeks, unless you need to come in sooner."

Alison made the appointment and then got in her car to drive to Marissa's preschool. She had some time to kill before the pick-up time, so she pulled into a coffee shop near the school. She didn't actually want anything, so she just sat in her car in the parking lot, composing her thoughts. Marissa had her dance recital and graduation that afternoon, and Alison wanted to try and put aside her diagnosis so she could focus on her daughter's big day.

She contemplated calling Flint to remind him of the event, but she didn't have the energy. Plus, she had already reminded him the previous evening as well as before he went to HQ that morning. Once it was time to pick up Marissa, Alison set aside her negativity. Marissa chatted happily about the recital and Alison reminded her of the moves she needed to perform during her part.

At one of the stop lights, Alison used the rear-view mirror to glance at her daughter. The one positive of her ordeal of the past nine months was that Marissa had taken the cross country move very well. Part of that could be attributed to the fact that Marissa loved the house they had bought. It was in an affluent gated subdivision with a club house and playground, and the house had its own pool. It was also bigger than the brownstone they had lived in in Washington, so Marissa not only had her own room, but a playroom that was filled with her toys.

Even so, Alison had been afraid that Marissa was going to miss her friends and teachers at the daycare at the Pentagon, but she didn't seem to. When Alison had voiced that concern to Marissa's pediatrician the doctor said that since Marissa was still so young, she probably hadn't formed close attachments.

Unlike herself. Alison missed her work and routine, and the friends that she had made at the Pentagon and Langley. She had been able to redevelop the friendships she had with the Joes that were still assigned to Headquarters, but since she wasn't involved in their day to day activities anymore, she sometimes felt like an outsider when they got together.

They arrived at the dance studio, and Alison helped Marissa into her outfit. Alison had to bite down on her lip to keep the tears at bay. Marissa looked adorable in her tutu and ballet slippers. She took a few photos, gave Marissa a hug and then wished her luck.

She walked out into the small auditorium and waited in the back for Flint to arrive. As it got close to show time, she called his phone, but he didn't answer. Shaking her head, she took a seat, saving the one next to her for him.

The minutes ticked by and every time Alison looked at the empty seat next to her, she grew even more furious. So when her cell phone vibrated in her pocket after the show started she knew exactly who was calling. She debated not answering it, but if Flint was calling to tell her he was bailing, he was going to get a piece of her mind.

Luckily, she was on the end so she didn't have to disturb any of the other parents watching the performance. She made her way to the back of the room, and out into the hall. "What?" she growled into the phone.

If Flint realized she was pissed he gave no indication of it. "Hey, hon. What time does the show start again?"

"It started ten minutes ago."

"Shit. I just left. But if traffic is okay, I should be able to get there in less than twenty minutes."

"You just left?" she repeated slowly and angrily. "You might as well turn around. Her dance is going to be over long before you get here."

Flint started to apologize but she cut him off. "No. Save it for when you do see Marissa. You promised her you were going to be here."

"I'm sorry. I have responsibilities."

Alison pulled the phone away from her ear. She debated throwing it but she knew that wasn't going to help her anger. "Yeah, I know. I have a responsibility as well, and that's to our daughter. I thought that was a priority you shared with me."

"Alison, calm down. This isn't that big of a deal. It's her fourth recital in six months."

"That's not the point. First of all, this one is a big deal. It's their graduation performance."

Flint scoffed. "Graduation? She's three. And it's dance class. How can they have a graduation?"

Alison ignored him. "She specifically asked you to come to this, which you said you would. She's going to notice you're not here."

"Like I said. I'm on my way. I'll catch the end of the performance."

Alison hung up. She let out a growl and then made her way back to her seat. She continued to bitch out Flint in her head, until Marissa's class took the stage. Then she forced away her anger, and slapped a smile on her face. She tried not to notice when Marissa waved at her but with a frown, looked at the empty seat next to her.

The routine brought a smile to Alison's face. Marissa's class consisted of six three-year-old girls, so they weren't exactly at prima ballerina status. But they were enthusiastic and seemed to enjoy spinning around. Once the show was over, she exited with the other parents. She saw that Flint was in the back row. "We can meet her backstage," she told him with hostility.

They fought the crowds, until she finally saw Marissa, who ran to her. She got a brief hug until Marissa saw her father. "Daddy! You did come! How come you didn't sit next to Mommy?"

Alison made a silent wish that Flint wouldn't lie to her. But it went unanswered. "I came a couple of minutes late, so I stayed in the back. I didn't want to get in the way of the other mommies and daddies."

"Oh," Marissa said simply and Alison knew that she caught him in the lie. "Did you see my double twirl?"

"Double?" Flint asked. "I thought it was a triple twirl?"

Marissa's face broke into a grin. "It was! And it was perfect!"

Alison couldn't help but smile. She was glad Marissa had a healthy sense of self-esteem. And she had to give Flint credit. He at least had paid enough attention to Marissa's practice routines at home to bluff his way through the conversation. It also helped that he still had the charm that had attracted her to him in the first place. She grabbed his arm. "So, lunch?"

Flint grimaced. "I'd love to, but I really can't. I've got Falcon covering for me, so I need to get back. But I promise, I'm going to leave early tonight and take my two favorite ladies out for a special dinner." He then kissed Alison, hugged Marissa and was gone as quickly as he came.

Once again, Alison reined in her anger. But she had to put it aside for the moment. "What do you want to do, kiddo. Get lunch with me or stay here?"

"Stay here!" Marissa answered enthusiastically. "They're having an ice cream party!"

That suited Alison just fine. After checking with the instructor to see if they needed any last-minute supplies, she left the studio. She headed home where she was in desperate need of a nap. It basically gave credence to the diagnosis she had been given earlier.

Once back at home, she went right to bed. Her body was exhausted but her mind was too wound up to sleep. All she could focus on was Flint's totally uncaring attitude towards her and Marissa. It made her worry about Marissa's future. Alison was fairly sure that her time was running short, and the idea of leaving Marissa behind with a father that cared more for his job than his daughter pissed her off.

She tried to cut Flint some slack because she hadn't clued him into how dire her health had become. But the reason why she hadn't told him was because he had grown distant from her the last few weeks. So she couldn't let the situation spiral out of control. She had to sit him down and tell him the truth about what she will be going through. She just hoped that he would then step up and be there for her and Marissa.

* * *

Flint walked through the door carrying two bouquets of flowers. Marissa ran to greet him, and taking care not to smash the flowers he gave her an awkward hug. Then he handed her one of the bouquets. "Princess, this is for you. In honor of your graduation today."

Marissa squealed and ran towards Alison asking her to put them in a vase. "You're going to need two vases," he said. He leaned over and gave her a kiss. "Because these are for you. I'm sorry about this morning."

Alison's eyes filled with tears, and she mumbled a thank you. She then went into the kitchen. Flint watched her for a few moments. The bad feeling he's had the last few weeks returned with a vengeance. But as has been his norm lately, he pushed the feeling aside and turned towards Marissa. "So Miss M, where do you want to go to eat?"

"Hibachi!" she answered enthusiastically.

Flint let out a laugh. There were times that he wished Marissa had gotten more of his genes, so he didn't so often feel outnumbered. "Is that okay with you?" he asked Alison.

She kept his back to him as she answered. "You know I don't say no to Japanese."

Flint told Marissa to get her shoes on, and he walked into the kitchen. He put his hand on Alison's shoulder. He didn't miss the fact that she cringed slightly. "Al, what's going on? Are you still mad about today?"

She turned around and wiped at her eyes. "Yes," she said sharply but then added, "And no. We need to talk. But not now. I don't want to ruin her dinner."

"I don't think it's going to be much fun if you're miserable, so just tell me what's bothering you."

Alison opened her mouth, but then she shook her head. "No. It'll wait 'til later. And I promise I won't be a grouch." She gave him a halfhearted smile.

Flint had to give Alison credit, she stayed true to her word. Her mood totally changed once they left for dinner. It ended up being an enjoyable evening. But once it was over and they returned home, Flint volunteered to put Marissa to bed. He took his time, trying to stall what he was sure was going to be an unpleasant conversation.

When he felt like he milked all the time he could, he gave Marissa a final kiss, and walked out to the living room. Alison was sitting on the couch. Flint walked into the kitchen to grab a beer and asked her if she wanted something. She declined, so he poured his beer into a glass and then took a seat next to her.

"Do you remember when I first found out how bad off I was and I gave you a free pass to move on?"

"Of course I do. I thought that was ridiculous."

"Don't speak so fast," Alison said before she paused. "Because now that you've had some more time to think about it, I'm offering it to you again."

"Al, stop it. I love you and I'm not going to abandon you. What brought this on? Marissa's dance recital? I honestly didn't think it was that big of a deal. If I knew how much it meant to you, I definitely would have been there."

"Dash, you're right. The dance recital wasn't that big of a deal. But you promised her that you were going to show up."

"And I meant it at the time. But you know how work gets, something came up."

"I do know. And that's my point. Something more important than your family always comes up."

"That's not fair. It's a juggling act balancing the Joes and my home life, and I've thought I've done a pretty good job. But if you want me to spend more time at home, then I'll try to do better."

"Damn it, Dash. Why do I have to tell you to spend more time with your family? Shouldn't you want to be here? That's why I'm saying that if you're having second thoughts, then take the out I'm offering. I don't want someone that is just staying with me out of a sense of pity and obligation."

"Jesus, Al, that's not why I'm here. How many times do I have to say I love you?"

"You say it, but you don't show it. Today's dance recital was the last straw. How many times over the last few weeks have you blown off dinner? Or gone into work on the weekends? At first I thought maybe something big was brewing with the Joes, but now I think you're just looking for excuses to not be home."

Flint remained quiet. Alison was right, he had been spending more time at Joe HQ. It had all been for legitimate reasons as the activity level had picked up in the last few months. But instead of panning off the tasks to others, which he could have easily done, he had decided to pull his fair share. "It's not that I don't want to be here. It's just that it has been busier. And since I feel like I owe so many guys for covering for me while I was with you in the hospital, I feel like I need to pay them back and do a little more on my end now. Which hasn't been fair to you. I guess I figured that with you being healthy now, that you've been enjoying the one on one time with Marissa."

Alison's tears flowed freely. "I have been having a good time with her. But I also want to have fun with you. Especially since I'm not actually healthy."

Flint cringed. She just confirmed his fear. He hadn't been as clueless to her situation as he just led her to believe. The previous flu season had been especially hard on the London survivors of the Red Shadows Superbug. But since Alison and Marissa had made it though seemingly unscathed, Flint thought they had dodged a bullet. There was a part of him that noticed she had been paler, and more tired than usual. But since he couldn't handle the idea of her getting sick again, he hoped that by ignoring the issue it would resolve itself. He wrapped his arms around her. "Babe, what's wrong?"

"My white blood cell counts are plummeting, which is why I feel so rundown. But the scary part is that my levels are so low that it's not going to take much of an infection to knock me out."

"They must be able to do something."

"Normally, they would consider some kind of bone marrow transplant. But because the virus is still running rampant in my system, they don't think it's going to help."

"So what's the long term prognosis?"

"Unless somebody comes up with a cure, it's not very long-term. So I'm giving you the ultimatum. If you want to be with me, than I need you to really be here for me. If you can't, I understand, and I won't fight you as you walk out the door."

Flint didn't know how to put his response into words. Instead he leaned in and kissed her deeply. Once he pulled away he said, "I love you so much that the idea of losing you scares the hell out of me. I don't know if we have weeks, years, or decades left together, but I do know I want to spend that time with you."

 _Author's Note:. Please forgive me for the questionable medical jargon and science used the last couple of chapters. I know I sacrificed realism for the drama of the story._


	18. Chapter 18

Alison put the last of the lunch plates into the dishwasher. Flint had taken Marissa to the movie theater to see the latest Disney release and Alison felt slightly guilty for not going with them. However, based on her mood that day, she knew it was better for all of them that she let them go out on their own.

Things between her and Flint had improved, at least for a short time, after their heart to heart talk a few weeks prior. But, Flint still had a demanding job that required his attention and time away from home. That and Alison's poor health grated on her nerves, which led to her snapping at him for every minor transgression.

The doorbell rang and Alison smiled. Once Flint had announced his plans for the afternoon, she had invited Scarlett and Cover Girl over for an impromptu girls' afternoon. Alison went to the door and opened it.

Scarlett stood on the other side. "Sorry, Court has duty this afternoon, so it's just me. But I brought cheap wine."

"That's perfect, come in," Alison said. She went into the kitchen, opened the bottle and poured two glasses.

"So how are you doing?" Scarlett asked once Alison returned to the living room.

Alison sighed. She could go into a diatribe about how her aches, pains, and shortness of breath was causing her sleepless nights which meant she spent her days exhausted, but instead she decided to go into excruciating detail about Flint's latest shortcoming.

Scarlett nodded in all the right places, but as Alison completed her recap she had a feeling that her friend thought she was overreacting. Scarlett confirmed her suspicions. "When was the last time you two had a getaway?"

Alison had to spend some time thinking about the question. When they had made the decision to sell the Brownstone in DC, the original plan had been for Alison to go with Flint to help him pack up. But she had been too weak to travel, so instead he had taken a handful of Joes to assist with the move. Since then another opportunity hadn't presented itself. "It's been a while," Alison admitted.

"That settles it. I know your anniversary isn't for another few months, but it's never too early to celebrate. I'll watch Marissa, so pick a weekend and a nice location and surprise Dash."

"I appreciate the offer, but I doubt Dash would want to spend a weekend alone with me."

"Maybe if you try being a little less of a bitch, he would be more receptive to the idea," Scarlett said with a smile and a sip of her wine.

Alison let out a hearty laugh. "Man, Shana, you know what I love about you? I'm dying and you still don't pull any punches with me."

"Stop it. Don't joke about dying. It's not funny." Alison just stared at her for a few moments until Scarlett continued. "It is a joke, right?"

Alison sadly shook her head. "It's really not shocking. I knew going into the transfusion that I was risking my life."

"Oh my God, Alison, how long do you have?"

"It depends on what day it is and what doctor I talk to. But if I'm really lucky I may be able to see Marissa start kindergarten."

"Alison, I'm so sorry, I had no idea."

"It's not your fault. You're the first one I told the news to so no one knows. I think even Dash is so deeply in denial that he doesn't think it's true."

"Is that why you have been so mad at him?"

Alison shook her head. "I know it seems like I have been, but really I'm not mad at him. He's been so wonderful these last few weeks that he doesn't deserve my wrath. But I can't help it. I guess I'm just so mad at fate that I'm taking it out on him. Plus, I think in the back of my mind, my death would be easier on him if we became estranged before it happened."

"That's a terrible thought. And that's not fair to either one of you. You both need each other so much right now. And besides, with as much as he loves you, do you really think that you can erode his feelings enough that your death won't still hit him hard? And if that happens, don't you think it's better that he's left with the memories of the good times you had, as opposed to wishing he did things differently in the end?"

That was something that Alison hadn't considered. But she still had her doubts. "I just don't know how many good times are left for me. I don't want him to be burdened taking care of me, and those are the last memories he has of me."

"Maybe that time comes, maybe it doesn't. But right now you're not looking like that much of an invalid to me. And the old Alison I knew would sure as hell not go out with a fight. So why don't you take advantage of the time you have now and make the most of it? Next weekend I am going to take Marissa. I don't care if you go to somewhere romantic, or if you sit in this living room playing cards for forty-eight hours. I'm going to give you the chance to have some time alone together."

* * *

Flint unlocked the door to the room at the lodge that they had booked near the Grand Canyon. Once inside he made a crack about the accommodations and a high-strung couple that they had encountered a few times during their exploration of the national landmark.

In retrospect, the joke Flint had told wasn't that funny, but because their first day of their getaway had been just about perfect, Alison's emotions had gotten the better of her. Alison started laughing so hard she had a hard time catching her breath. At first Flint was just as hysterical as she was but once she started coughing, he got concerned. "I'm fine," she said as in between gasps of breath. "Man, I needed that laugh."

"I know something else you need," Flint said huskily. What followed was the most passionate, both physical and emotional, that Alison had experienced in a long time, if ever. Once it was over she clung to him. She was overwhelmed with emotions, but she tried to keep the mood light.

"I give that a solid ten out of ten," she said as she stroked Flint's chest.

"That's all? Personally, I think it was off the charts."

"Okay, fine, you got me. I thought so too, but I wasn't sure just how far to take it off the charts? 15? 20? 100? I mean really once you go beyond a ten, how do you quantify it?"

Flint kissed the top of her head. "I'm just glad I can still make you happy."

"Dash, I know it doesn't seem like it, but you've never stopped making me happy."

Flint rolled over to face her. "That means a lot to me to hear you say that. I know things have been rough, and I've tried not to take things personally, but there are times I wonder if I'm just screwing everything up lately."

Despite her promise to herself to keep her emotions in check and not break down, Flint was making it very hard on her. "No, you've been wonderful. Yes, there have been some trying times and some missteps but all in all I've been so grateful for everything you've done for me."

Flint went quiet. After a few moments he spoke again. "I know you think that I've been oblivious to what's going on. And maybe it's me being stubborn, or some sort of coping mechanism, but I honestly don't believe what the doctors have been telling you. I know you're sick, and you need time to get better, but I truly believe you will recover. But on the small chance that I'm wrong, can you stop pulling away from me? This weekend has been amazing, and I've wanted this for so long. I don't want it to end."

"I don't want it to, either," Alison said quietly. "Dash, you're right. I have been distant. I just want to protect you and Marissa from the pain that I know is coming."

"Like I said, I don't believe that's a done deal. But either way, as much as I love that you want to spare me from hurt feelings, let me worry about what I can and can't deal with. What I do know is that I've been fairly miserable these last few weeks, and it has nothing to do with your death sentence. I've missed you, and I want you back in my life for as long as we get the chance to live together."

Alison nodded. "Okay. It's a deal."

Flint sat up with a grin. "Good. And we're starting right now. I'm going to call Scarlett to see if she'd mind keeping Marissa a couple more days. And then I'm calling Duke to not expect me back for a while. You said you want to ride a donkey to the bottom of the canyon, so that's what we're going to do."

"Whoa, Dash, can we do that? You can't just blow off the Joes, and what about Marissa?"

Flint waved her off. "The Joes have survived without me, and they can do it this coming week as well. And I'm fairly certain Scarlett can handle taking care of Marissa. I left her a key to our place in case she needed anything while we were gone."

Alison smiled. "Does that mean that this trip extension is not quite as impromptu as you made it seem?"

Flint grinned. "Guilty as charged. I kind of planted the seed with the others that I wanted this to be more of a vacation as opposed to a quick weekend getaway. I just wanted to see how you were feeling before I clued you into my plan."

Alison wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you so very much."

* * *

The following evening, the two were enjoying a dinner at the restaurant near the edge of the Grand Canyon. They had placed their orders, and while waiting on their meals they were finding ways to pass the time.

"Come on, you have to answer the question," Alison teased.

"Why? We both know it's only going to get me in trouble. And believe me, I have spent the last few years trying to avoid getting in the dog house with you."

Alison let out a laugh. "Nice. You make me sound like an ogre, but that's beside the point. I'm giving you a free pass to answer the question without any repercussions. This is just a fun game of truth or dare."

Flint too laughed hard. "More like truth or truth. Okay. So you want to know who would be my second choice to date on the Joe team?"

"Yep. If I never joined who do you think you would have hooked up with?"

"And for the sake of this hypothetical, do we assume that everything else played out like it did? For instance does Jinx still get together with Falcon? Because if so, she's automatically eliminated."

"Okay, fine."

"Which means that also eliminates Scarlett."

"Really?"

"Why do you sound so shocked? Even if I was interested, the minute Duke marked his territory, I would walk away."

"Wow. You mean the red hair and great body had never turned you on?"

"Honestly? No. I have to admit from the moment I met her, she scared me a little bit. And I had a bad experience with a redhead in college, so I've been a little wary of them."

Alison again let out a loud laugh. "How have we never discussed this before? Okay, so I guess that means your final answer is Cover Girl?"

Flint blushed. "Remember you promised not to hold this against me. When I first joined the team, she caught my eye, as I'm sure was the case for every red-blooded male on the team. And I did try to see if there was any mutual interest. But she made it quite clear there wasn't. So my question to you is, does it have to be a Joe woman?"

Alison eyed him. "This dinner is going to come to an abrupt end if you're trying to tell me your answer is the Baroness."

Flint hid his reaction behind a glass of wine. "No, of course not. There was, though, this Greenshirt."

Alison grinned. "Nice save."

* * *

Alison spent the weeks following their return from the Grand Canyon compiling and going through what she considered her final to-do list. Working with Marissa she put together a photo show that highlighted their good times together. She hadn't told the child the real reason behind it, as Alison didn't want to upset her. She also wrote letters to Flint and Marissa to be opened in the future.

One evening, after Flint had returned home at a reasonable hour, she called Duke and asked if he could meet her at one of the local bars. She then told Flint that she had a couple of errands to run.

She arrived first and picked an available high top near the entrance. Duke walked in a few minutes later. He leaned over to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Good evening. How are you doing?"

"Unfortunately, I'm still dying," she replied with as much lightheartedness as possible. However, Duke grimaced, so she apologized. "I'm sorry. I've developed quite the morbid sense of humor. Apparently, it's one of the ways of coping."

Duke rubbed her shoulder. "I need to admit that you have me at a disadvantage. Flint hasn't exactly been forthcoming with a lot of details about your health."

Alison nodded. "He doesn't like to talk about it." She then quickly recapped the doctor's diagnosis and how she's felt like she's been slipping slowly away the previous few weeks.

Once she was done, Duke looked at her sadly. "I'm going to pray that the doctors are wrong. Or that we can help zero in on a cure. From what I hear there have been great strides made."

Alison smiled even though she too had been keeping up with the latest news, and that none of it was as positive as Duke made it sound. "I too pray that you are right."

"Can I order you a drink?"

"Please. I'll take whatever the house special is. That's another coping mechanism."

Duke walked over to the bar and returned a short time later. He clinked glasses with her before they each took a sip. "Con, I'll get right to it. I have a favor to ask."

"Of course. Anything."

"You might want to hear it before you agree to it. I know it's not going to be easy, but can you help Dash out, once I'm gone? I know he's going to take it pretty hard, and I worry about him and Marissa afterwards." Despite her best efforts, the tears started again.

Duke pulled her in for a hug. "Absolutely, Alison. You know I love him like a brother, and I would do anything for him."

"Thank you," she said. She wiped at her eyes and took another sip of her drink. "Okay, now that, that unpleasantness is out of the way, I have another question to ask you. Are you ever going to get your head out of your ass and get back with Shana?"

Duke let out a loud laugh. "Damn, Al, you're not pulling any punches tonight."

"That's one of the nice things about dying. I don't have to worry anymore about what I say."

Duke laughed again. "You mean to tell me that up to this point, you've actually been restraining yourself?"

Alison joined in the laughter as Duke again reached out to hug her. "Believe me, Alison, I am not going to let you go without a fight."


	19. Chapter 19

Flint walked the corridors of Joe Headquarters towards Duke's office. He had just arrived on base, and since Officer's Call had long since ended he wanted to find out what he had missed.

Duke's door was ajar, so Flint knocked and walked in. "Thank you for covering for me. I needed to drop Marissa off at her preschool."

Duke nodded. "It was no problem. In fact, the morning has been pretty quiet, so if you want to take the rest of the day as well, I can handle things here."

Flint sighed. "I appreciate the offer, but I'll probably be more useful here. And focusing on the Red Shadows mission will be a nice distraction."

Duke grimaced. "Unfortunately that's officially on hold."

"What?" Flint growled. "Why?"

"Because the Spooks aren't convinced we have the right location. They want to spend some more time vetting the intel."

"How about we skip that part and just go see for ourselves what goodies the Red Shadows are hiding? They could be sitting on the cure."

"Or the CIA is correct in their assessment that it's not their lab. We end up tipping our hand that we're on to them, and they run off with the cure and whatever other nasty biothreats they've cooked up." Duke stood from his desk and walked over to Flint. He put his hand on his shoulder. "I know this isn't what you want to hear, but we can't rush into this. We need to just give it a little more time."

Flint slammed his hand on the desk. "That's the problem, Duke, I can't just sit around and wait. Alison doesn't have that kind of time left." He closed his eyes and shook his head. "I had to take Marissa this morning, because she didn't even have the energy to get out of bed."

"Dash, I'm sorry. I didn't realize it had progressed that quick. I'll talk to Anvil and Hawk. Maybe they can speed up the process. And like I said before, go home."

Flint nodded. "I will. In a little while. I'm going to pick up Marissa at noon, so I'm just going to stay here a couple of hours."

Flint walked out of Duke's office and into his own. He took a seat at his desk and began to tackle the pile of paperwork that had accumulated. At first as he read through the forms, signing the ones he needed to approve, was a welcoming mind-numbing procedure. But then his thoughts began to wander as he thought about how fragile Alison had looked lying in their bed that morning. He thought about calling her to check up on her, but he knew she needed her rest.

He decided to do something more physical to get his mind off of her failing health. He walked into the gym and eyed the boxing equipment. He put on a pair of gloves and then took out all of his frustrations on the punching bag.

He continued his furious punches until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around, nearly hitting the man that had interrupted his session.

"Whoa," Beachhead said. "I wanted to stop you before you destroyed your arms."

Flint was going to reply that he was fine, but he then noticed the pain radiating from his fists and elbows. "Thanks," he said simply.

He showered and then returned to his desk. A few minutes later his phone rang. It was Alison. "Hey, babe, are you feeling better?"

"No, I'm not," she replied breathlessly.

Flint sat up straighter in his chair and his heart began to pound. "What's wrong."

"I'm having," she began but then had to catch her breath. "a hard time breathing."

"I'm going to call 911 and then I'll meet you at the hospital."

"No, Dash, wait. I can hang in here a little while longer. Pick Marissa up and bring her home. I want to say goodbye to her first."

Flint brought the phone away as he clamped down on his tears. He knew she didn't mean that in a 'Mommy is going to the hospital for a few days' sort of goodbye, but as her final one. Once he trusted himself to speak without breaking down he brought the phone back to his ear. "Okay, I'm going to go get her now."

The next hour passed in a blur as Flint drove on auto-pilot to Marissa's preschool and then to their house. When they walked in, Alison was standing in the dining room, and she looked better than Flint had expected. He had a brief glimmer of hope until he noticed that her breathing was still labored and she was using the chair as a crutch to stand.

Marissa ran to her, and Alison bent over to pick her up but then decided against it. Instead, she led her to the couch where they both sat down. "Mommy wants to talk to you. I have to go back to the hospital."

"No!" Marissa cried out. Flint made a move towards her, but Alison waved him off.

"I know Sweetie, it's not fair. But Mommy's feeling sick again. I need you to be a big girl for me and help Daddy out."

Marissa nodded, and Flint had to turn away from the scene. The doorbell rang, presenting a distraction for him.

"That's probably Chrissy. I asked her to come over to watch Marissa this afternoon. Can you get her set up?" Alison asked.

Chrissy was a college student living down the street from them, who had become Marissa's favorite babysitter. Flint was glad that Alison had the foresight to call her, as he hadn't even given thought to who was going to care for Marissa.

He spent a few minutes with Chrissy, pointing out the collection of snacks and drinks and the options they had for dinner. He then ran through her schedule for the rest of the day. When he finished, Chrissy nodded. "Don't worry, Mr. Faireborn, I will take good care of her."

Alison was ready to go. She gave Marissa one last hug and kiss and Flint helped her to their car. "I called Dr. Harrison's office, and they are expecting us. They said it's better to go there first so we could hopefully bypass some of the check-in process at the hospital."

Once again Flint felt like he switched over to auto-pilot. He did as Alison instructed and took her to the doctor's office. They brought her right back into an examination room, and after taking her vitals, and listening to her chest they determined that she did need to get to the hospital as soon as possible.

Dr. Harrison called the hospital and secured her a room. He told Flint and Alison to go ahead and get admitted, and he was going to come by as soon as his office hours ended.

Even with the call ahead, it still took over an hour to get Alison into a room. Once she was settled into a bed, and hooked up to oxygen her color started to return and she looked more relaxed. "Feel better?" Flint asked.

"I do."

Flint began to get a glimmer of hope. Maybe things weren't as dire as he thought. Maybe all she needed was a little extra oxygen to get by. He knew many people lived on portable oxygen. It wasn't ideal, but it was better than the alternative.

However, his hopes were dashed some time later, after they had taken Alison for x-rays of her chest. Dr. Harrison walked in shortly after Alison had returned, looking grim. "Your lungs are filling up with fluid," he said. The medication you're currently on is supposed to prevent that, but there was always the chance that eventually it would cease working.

"Unfortunately, that leaves us with little options. The good news is that right now, there doesn't appear to be any permanent damage to your lungs so if we can find a way to halt the virus, I would expect a good chance of a complete recovery. So to buy some time, I'm recommending that we induce a coma in order to put you on a lung and heart bypass."

"That seems rather drastic," Flint said.

"I admit it is. And being on bypass comes with its own risks which is why you can only be on it for a few days. But looking at how much your health has deteriorated the last few weeks, I believe it's the best chance you have.

"Take some time to talk it over. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Once Dr. Harrison left, Flint started to give Alison a pep talk but she stopped him. "Like the doctor said, we don't have a lot of options or time. While I have a bad feeling that I'm not going to wake up from the nap they're going to put me in I don't think I have a choice."

Flint grabbed her hand. "Don't be so negative. I haven't told you this, because it's still classified, but the Joes have a good lead on the Red Shadows and the antidote. We're just waiting on final clearance to go after them." Technically, everything Flint had just said was true, even if it was an overly optimistic interpretation of the situation.

Alison smiled. "That makes me feel better. But, Dash, in case it doesn't work, I have a few requests."

Flint brushed the stray hairs off of her forehead. "Anything you want."

"I said my goodbye to Marissa, so don't drag her here to watch me fade away. And I hope she'll remember me, but if she doesn't please tell her how much I love her."

Flint was reminded of the time before he went on the Red Shadows mission, when he thought he was heading off to his death. He had thought at the time that contemplating his own death had been a tough experience to go through. But now he realized being on the other end was even harder. "Alison, like I said, there's still hope so don't think like that."

"Dash, I want to believe that this is all going to be okay. But just in case, I need to do this. So many people pass on without settling their affairs. I'm lucky in that I have the chance to do that. I have the opportunity to tell you that I love you so very much."

"I love you too, Alison," Flint said quietly. "I give thanks every day that you and Marissa are in my life."

Alison nodded with a smile. "I do too." She settled her head against the pillow. "I'm sorry, but I'm so tired."

Flint wanted to tell her to fight the impulse, that he didn't want the conversation to end. But it was unfair to keep her suffering. He leaned over and kissed her. "I'll get the doctor. I love you Alison Faireborn."

"I love you too, Dashiell."

Flint walked out of Alison's room feeling completely numb. He saw Dr. Harrison at the nurses' station. "She's ready," he said simply.

The doctor patted his shoulder. "We're going to transfer her to ICU. It's going to take some time, but I'll have someone call you once she's ready to be seen again."

Flint nodded. He walked down the hallway to the elevator. As he made his way outside he contemplated his next move. He had come to the decision that regardless if the Joes got permission to go after the Red Shadows cure, it wasn't going to stop him. But before he could leave on the mission he needed to see to Marissa.

His first instinct was to call his parents to come take care of Marissa for a few days. But he thought back to Alison's comments about how upset his mother had been when he had gone on the Red Shadows mission. He didn't have the energy to deal with his mother's fragile emotional state. So he moved on to his next choice, which was someone that had a calmer disposition, and more importantly, was someone that Marissa adored even if they didn't spend a lot of time together.

He dialed the number, and once his sister answered he said, "Diana, I need your help."

* * *

Early the next morning Flint went to Headquarters. He had a list of items that he needed to accomplish, and he wanted to get it done as quickly as possible. His first stop was to the armory to load up on weapons and ammunition. His second stop was his office to get acquainted with the latest intel reports.

He was engrossed in his reading and didn't hear Duke enter until the Top cleared his throat. "What are you doing?"

Flint looked up from the paperwork. He considered making up a story, but he decided to be truthful. He knew going on the mission would most likely result in a court martial, but he didn't particularly care about his future on the Joe team. "I'm going after the cure."

Duke didn't look surprised by his admission. "That's why I came to find you. The Jugglers okayed the Joes' mission, so you can stand down on whatever harebrained scheme you have come up with."

Flint digested the news. It didn't change his immediate plans. "Good. I guess I'll have company."

"Flint, I hope you're not seriously considering leading this mission."

Flint turned to face Duke. "No. I would never want to jeopardize the men under my command, but I am going on the mission."

Duke sighed. "For a minute I thought you were actually being sensible. You don't have to do this, every man on the team wants to find the cure for Alison."

"I know. And I'm not questioning anyone's dedication. But they don't have to go home at night and try to figure out an answer to their daughter's question of when mommy is coming home."

"Flint, I've said it over and over again that I can't imagine what you are going through. But it's because of Marissa, that I can't let you go. She needs you."

Flint placed his hands on the table and closed his eyes. After he had come home from the hospital the previous night he had stood just outside her door and watched as she slept. He knew that she was going to be in good hands with Diana, but he was sure that Marissa was going to miss both of her parents terribly. But one day she too may need the cure. All signs pointed to her continuing to be in remission, but Flint feared she too may suffer a relapse.

So to ensure that he gave his wife and daughter their greatest chance at a long and healthy life, he had to help find the cure. And if the worst happened to him? If the team didn't come back with a cure she would probably end up an orphan. And if they did, Alison would wake up to the news that he sacrificed himself for her. But even with the conflicting thoughts, he knew he couldn't sit idly by and wait for the team to return with the potential cure. So despite the risk, he had to go on the mission.

"Duke, I'm not looking to be a martyr or even a hero. I know I can trust the team to do their best, but since this is life or death for Alison, and maybe even Marissa, I have to do everything I can to ensure that this mission succeeds."

Duke remained quiet, so Flint continued. "I'm going to make it easy on you. Either you let me get on that transport, or I'm going to walk out of here, kiss my little girl goodbye and then go MIA for a few days."

"You have a go," Duke replied.

* * *

"The place is cleared out!" Wetsuit reported.

Beachhead let out a curse. "Tear this place apart to figure out where everyone disappeared to. In the meantime, I'm going to have a chat with our new friend."

Flint put out an arm to stop him. "No, let me." He walked over to the corner of the room where Leatherneck had his gun trained on the Red Shadows operative. He told Leatherneck to give him some space and then he got into the man's face. "Where did the rest of the Red Shadows scum run off to?"

The man met his eyes for only a moment. He then looked to the ground as he kept quiet. Flint held on to his temple for only a couple of seconds before he grabbed the man by his shirt. "Listen, buddy, I have no patience. I'm going to get the information from you one way or another."

Lifeline put a hand on Flint's shoulder. "Flint, calm down. Maybe," he began but Flint cut him off.

"No, I won't calm down. And I'm not going to let Alison die because I had to play by the rules of engagement." He turned his attention back to the man. "So either you tell me where the others are, or I'm going to start cutting pieces off of you one by one."

That got the man's attention. "Okay. Listen, I'm low man around here which is why I got stuck behind guarding this place while everyone else ran off. So I was never told where they were going. But I did hear enough references to the Gamma site to clue me in that's where they probably went."

"Where is that?" Beachhead asked.

"It's an abandoned warehouse about ten miles outside the city limits. If you go through the records you'll probably find a copy of the deed when it was bought at an auction about a year ago."

"I'm on it," Firewall said as she frantically typed away at one of the computer stations.

"And that's where they took the cure?" Flint asked.

"What cure?" the man asked.

"Don't make me hit you," Flint said through clenched teeth as he gripped his shotgun a little tighter.

"I'm sorry. I'm not being a wiseass, it's just that they've developed a lot of nasty stuff here, so which one are you looking for?"

"The antidote to the London Superbug."

The man looked at him for a moment then nodded. "You don't have to go to the Gamma site. There's a vial of it here. Let me up and I'll show you where it is."

Flint looked at Beachhead who just shrugged and then nodded at Leatherneck. The marine grabbed the prisoner by his arm and yanked him to his feet. "Don't try anything funny."

"I won't. I just need to get to my locker." They went down the hallway and entered the locker room. As he began to fiddle with the lock he said, "I have a wife and kids that I want to protect."

"You want to protect your family, yet you joined the Red Shadows?" Beachhead asked incredulously.

"Desperate times called for desperate measures," the man said simply. The lock unclasped, and he opened the locker door. He reached in and began to play with the backing. "The good thing about being just one of the grunts here is that no one pays you a lot of attention. So they don't notice when you pocket a vial or two." The back of the locker opened. He reached in and pulled out a small tray of vials that held a half dozen of different colored liquids. "It's the green one."

Flint carefully grabbed hold of it. "How do we know this is really it?"

"There's a lab down the hall. I'm pretty sure the computers in there have the chemical composition. If you know what you're doing you can compare the two."

Flint turned towards Life-Line who nodded. "I'm going to need Firewall's help, but I know what to do."

Flint watched as the doctor and the young hacker ran out of the room. His wife's fate was now in the hand of others.

* * *

Alison walked down a cobblestone street. The air was thick with fog, so she could barely see her surroundings. Her mind too seemed filled with the fog, as she had no memory of where she was or what she was supposed to be doing. It seemed like she had been plagued with a series of bizarre dreams and memories which was making it hard for her to think.

She felt a squeeze of her hand so she looked down and smiled at Marissa. "I go play, Mommy," she said.

Alison let go and warned her daughter not to go too far but as soon as the words left her mouth she realized her daughter disappeared. Panic gripped her heart. "Marissa!" she cried out.

"Don't worry Alison," an elderly woman's voice said from somewhere in the fog. "She's still safe inside of you."

Alison's hand went to her stomach. The mystery woman was correct. She could feel the slight bulge of her abdomen. She looked down and noticed that she was wearing her G.I. Joe uniform. Alison then realized where she was. She was in Scotland, on a mission with the Joes to spy on Destro's castle.

The fog seemed to clear slightly and the old woman who talked to her emerged from the shadows. "You remember me, yes?"

"I do," Alison said. "Is this another memory or dream?"

"A little of both," the woman replied cryptically.

Alison's fears evaporated and she was filled with a preternatural calm. "I'm dying. This is what you warned me about."

The woman walked slowly towards her. She grabbed both of Alison's hands. "When I met you all those years ago, that was the tragic future I foresaw."

Alison nodded. It was the fate she had resigned herself too. But then the old woman continued. "I was wrong. I didn't foresee how the deep love your husband has for you could change the outcome."

"Dash," Alison whispered. She began to fight against the apathy she had been feeling and began to develop a will to fight. She wanted to see her husband and daughter again, to feel them in her arms. Not only mentally, but physically she felt herself getting stronger.

The old woman squeezed her hands. "You're going back. You don't need to worry anymore about my premonition."

Alison squeezed the hand back, but this time it felt different. It wasn't Marissa's, or an old woman's but the hands of the man she knew so well. She tried to say his name, but it came out as barely a faint whisper.

However, it was enough to generate a response. "Alison?"

Alison opened her eyes, and Flint grinned at her. He leaned over to hug her tight. "Everything is going to be all right now."


	20. Epilogue

A moan escaped from Alison's lips as the familiar orgasmic sensations washed over her. She uttered her husband's name which increased his actions. Moments later Flint let out a moan of his own, and then he collapsed into her arms. He lay there for a few seconds, as he caught his breath. Alison smiled. Even though it had been more than twenty-five years since she started making love with Flint, she loved the fact that they still enjoyed it. They weren't nearly as frisky as they once were, but they still found the time to have semi-regular sex.

Flint's phone beeped, and he rose from the bed to read the message. Alison took the opportunity to ogle him. His hair had gone completely gray, a fact that had given him a fair amount of grief until Alison pointed out that at least he still had hair, unlike many other men his age.

Flint caught her eye and smiled. "Checking out the goodies?"

It was a line he used over and over again, yet it still brought a slight blush to her cheeks. "Yep, I can't help it," she replied. It was true. Despite his hair and the few wrinkles he was still in top physical shape and a very attractive man.

Flint opened his mouth to reply but instead he cursed. "They changed the schedule again. I'm definitely not going to make opening night now."

Alison got out of bed to join him at his side. "Dash, I told you it's fine. You made the last four, so I'll give you the free pass."

"I know, but I still feel bad. As long as they don't change the schedule again, I should make it back for one of the final performances."

"I'll make sure to save you a seat. In fact Shana said she and Con will be in town that week, so hopefully we can finally get together."

Flint grimaced. "I just hope they're not bringing the twins this time."

Alison couldn't help but laugh. The last time the Hausers had come to New York to visit the Faireborns' they asked if the two wouldn't mind taking care of their then twelve-year-old twins so they could have a night alone in the city. Both she and Flint thought it would be fun to revisit parenting, so they agreed. However, an hour into the evening, Flint had declared that the two were the most spoiled, self-centered kids he had ever encountered. At first Alison had argued that the boys were just on the rambunctious side, but by the next morning she had agreed with Flint's assessment. "They didn't say. But the boys are older now, so hopefully they are better behaved."

Flint nodded as he continued to scroll through the information. "The good news is that due to the extension, we may be able to rendezvous with Marissa's ship."

"That is great news. I hope you get to see her again."

Flint grinned. "Me too. I know from her emails and videos she's doing fine, but I'll feel better once I get to see her firsthand."

Alison smiled. Marissa was a grown woman, a captain in the Earth Defense Command, but Flint still considered her to be his baby girl. At times Alison thought he took the worried father routine a bit too far, but she had to give her daughter credit, because she did her best to humor Flint. Alison knew that was because the girl absolutely adored her father. Lately, on the rare occasion that Marissa came home, Alison at times felt like a third wheel.

At first, she was bothered by the fact that the two shared a bond without her. But then she realized that part of that was due to the fact that since Flint too held a position in the Earth Defense Command they had a shared connection through their careers. And, Alison had long since come to the realization that Marissa was nearly an exact clone of herself. Not only in looks, but in personality. She would have thought that meant that the two would be the best of friends, but unfortunately it seemed the opposite was true. Marissa had inherited her temper and stubbornness, but had just enough difference in her likes and dislikes to create the perfect storm of friction with her mother.

Alison remembered one epic fight between the two of them, shortly after Marissa had graduated high school. She couldn't remember what started the argument but it had quickly turned into a serious fight, complete with yelling and even colorful phrases uttered in several different languages. Once Marissa had stormed off, Alison had turned to Flint, who had wisely stayed off to the side and kept his mouth shut. She did, though, notice that he was failing miserably at withholding a laugh.

"What exactly is so funny?" she growled.

"I've always wanted you to know what it was like arguing with yourself. Today, I think you found out."

Flint finished reading the message and he turned to her. "Looks like our launch is on schedule, so I better hop in the shower."

Alison nodded and climbed back into bed. She had long since given up her career in the intelligence department, so she only knew the basics of the mission that Flint was getting ready to embark on. The only thing she knew was that it should be a relatively safe diplomatic mission. While Flint was still considered active duty, he had reached the age where his combat days were behind him. With Marissa, though, it was a different story. The world, or more technically, worlds were currently at peace. But Alison knew first hand that a stable peace was a fleeting thing.

Apparently, since she started on the trip down memory lane, her mind was determined to continue on. She thought back to the previous threats they had faced and eradicated, Cobra, and the Red Shadows who had been taken down a few months after she had been cured from the Superbug.

She had regained enough of her health to go on and live a normal life, including giving birth to their son, D.J., fourteen months after she had awoken from the coma that saved her life. D.J.'s arrival put an end to her brief CIA career, although she spent the first few years of his life doing part-time consulting work in the intelligence sector. Anvil even let go of his grudge and used her services a few times. Eventually Alison turned her attention to other passions, and once both kids were in school full time, Alison decide to pursue a career in acting. At first, she only did small parts in local plays, but as more and more people began to recognize her talent, she worked her way up to starring roles.

One summer, before Marissa's senior year of high school, Alison joined a Broadway touring production. Flint had taken on more of an advisory role to the Joe team at that point, and the three of them had traveled with her to a few stops through Mid-America.

One of the cities they had stopped in was Colorado Springs, and Marissa had insisted on visiting the Air Force Academy. Her reasons became apparent when Alison returned home at the end of her tour that fall. Marissa announced that not only had she applied to the Academy, but she had been accepted.

Flint hadn't taken the news well. Despite the fact that Alison had felt like she needed to counteract Flint's overprotective nature towards Marissa and play the role of the detached mother letting her daughter live out her dreams, Alison too worried about the career choice. Her fear only deepened as shortly thereafter, the Earth had discovered they were not alone in the universe.

D.J. didn't share the same calling for the military as his parents and sister did. He instead was majoring in Literature at Columbia University. He lived away from home in an off-campus apartment, but with one child so far away, Alison liked the idea that her son was only across town.

She made a mental note to check in with D.J after Flint left to see if he was still available to come see her show that night. Flint emerged from the bathroom, fully dressed in his uniform. He came over to give her a kiss. "I'll be in touch as often as I can."

"Okay. Be careful."

Flint grinned. "You know they're not going to let a geriatric like me anywhere near the excitement."

Alison returned a smile. "But you'll still find a way to get yourself in trouble."

"You know me," Flint said, and then he was gone.

Alison sighed. She decided it was time to get up and shower, but then her phone rang. She saw it was Marissa so she switched to video mode. However, the picture was very staticky. "Marissa! It's good to see you. I wasn't expecting to hear from you for a couple more weeks."

"Yeah, there was another schedule change. I'm sorry about the video quality, but apparently the solar flares are high today."

"Are you on your ship?"

"No, we pulled into the space station."

Alison thought Marissa looked and sounded rattled, but she wasn't sure if that was only due to poor quality of the connection. "If you're looking for your father, he just left. You might still be able to get him on his cell."

"Actually, I called to talk to you. Back when you were on G.I. Joe, did you ever have doubts about yourself?"

Alison had a flashback to her early days on the Joe team when those thoughts were a constant presence in her head. "I did. Several times in fact."

"How did you get over it? How did you know that you were doing the right thing?"

"Honestly? My stubbornness wouldn't let me give up. I had worked too hard to get on the team to give any kind of serious thought to quitting."

Marissa didn't respond and Alison was now convinced something was troubling her daughter. "Marissa, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I just," she began but then paused. She ran her hand through her hair. "I can't go into many details, because the mission is classified, but let's just say that I was tricked into thinking something that I thought was true wasn't."

"Marissa, if someone deceived you, you can't blame yourself."

"But I should have known better. I let my emotions get the better of me and therefore I missed the warning signs."

Alison hated having this conversation via the phone. She wanted nothing more than to give her daughter a hug. "Were you reprimanded for your actions?"

"Not officially. Everyone I talked to agrees with you that I shouldn't blame myself. But I still ended up on a time out on the Space Station."

"It sounds like you're being a lot harder on yourself than anyone else is."

"Maybe. But during my down time, I watched the video of the Ghost Prototype interview you gave to Twenty Questions, and you seemed so confident, so sure of yourself that I began to wonder that maybe I'm in the wrong line of work."

There was a lot to process in what Marissa said. But Alison first had to ask what she felt was the most pertinent question, "Where did you find that?"

"Actually, D.J. sent me a copy."

"Really? Where did he get it?"

"Come on Mom, you know the internet is a wealth of information."

"I do. But with all that is on there, why would he choose to waste his time on that video?"

"It's definitely not a waste of time. It's part of his research project."

Alison laughed. "The poor kid. He has to watch old episodes of Twenty Questions?"

"Not exactly. He's actually putting together a biography about you and Dad."

Alison was touched by the gesture. "How sweet of him."

Marissa looked sheepish. "I think it's supposed to be a surprise. So if he tells you about it act like it's all brand new information. Anyway, I found it really interesting. Plus it was so cool seeing you and Dad from back then. You looked so young!"

Alison sighed. "Yeah, that was a long time ago."

"That's exactly my point. You were my age, and you looked like you had it all under control."

"Marissa, that's not true. I was a few years older than you are now. And I was basically a veteran on the Joe team at that point. Plus, what you saw was all an act. We had staged it to try and catch Cobra. There was a lot more happening behind the scenes than what was shown on air. So you didn't see the part where I got emotional when I thought I lost a good friend, or how your father was dealing with doubts of his own, or even how I was up the whole night before wondering if I had what it takes to pull the charade off."

Marissa again went quiet. Alison tried to study her daughter, but the poor reception was making it difficult. Marissa turned her head as someone in her background spoke to her. She nodded and then turned her attention back to the call. "I only have a couple of minutes left. Thank you for the pep talk."

Alison wished this call had occurred an hour earlier. She would have figured out a way to make the trip with Dash. Instead she had to make do with what she had. "Marissa, I want you to know how proud your father and I are of you. And I don't want you to feel like you're living in our shadows. The next time you're home, we're going to invite Mr. and Mrs. Hauser over who can give you quite the earful on the less than questionable decisions your father and I had made over the years. But don't tell D.J. He'll have to rewrite his whole biography."

Marissa laughed. "That sounds like fun. I love you Mom."

"I love you too." The connection ended. Alison wiped away a tear as she thought about how truly blessed she was.

 _Author's note: So like the title says, This is Where It Ends (this title as well as the previous two were taken from Barenaked Ladies songs). A special thanks to Mossley who not only beta read the first half of the trilogy but gave me the suggestion and inspiration to change the way this story played out. Also thank you to everyone who has read and commented. I started on this idea in April of 2015, and there were many times I would never get to the end. But reading the reviews and having chats with my readers kept my motivation going. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!_


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